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ECHOES 


Rocky  Mountains 


Reminiscences  a»d  Thrilunc 

Golden  Ag^  of  the  GkL.vr  ;     v  L.kAriin: 

Account  of  its  Discov...  imem 

Ayo  Grakd  Devei 


JOHN   W.   CLAMP     T 

Ci'un  r 


BL^A-BORA-T 


THE     NATIONAL     BOOK     CONCERN 

134    Van    Buren    Street, 

CHICAGO. 


-r' 


ECHOES 


FROM     THK 


Rocky  Mountains 


Reminiscences  and  Thrilling    Incidents  of  the  Romantic  and 

Golden  Age  ok  the  Great  West,  with  a  Graphic 

Account  of  its  Discovery,  Settlement 

AND  Grand  Development. 


BY 

JOHN   W.   CLAMPITT 

Counselor  at  Law. 


BCIvABORA.TlSLY     IULUSTBiA.TE^r> 


THE     NATIONAL     BOOK     CONCERN, 
134   Van    Buren    Street, 
CHICAGO. 


Copyright  i88S.  by 
JOHN    W.    CLAMPITT. 


DONOHUE  &  HEXNEBERRY, 
Pkixters,  Ekgravers  asd  Bisders, 

CHICAGO. 


To  The 

Pioneers  of  the   Pacific, 

Men  who  Nobly  Braved  the  Waves  of  Perilous  Fortune 

AND 

I 

Laid  Down  their  Lives 

IN  Founding  the  Great  Commonwealths  of  the 

Pacific  Coast, 

THIS    WORK    IS    DEDICATED. 


"What  lives  they  lived  !     What  deaths  they  died  i 
A  thousand   canons  dark'ning  wide 
Below  Sierra's  slopes  of  pride 
Receive  them   now.    And  they  who  died 
Along  the  dim,  far  desert  route  — 
Their  ghosts  are   many.      Let  them   keep 

'Their  vast  possession.     The   Piute, 
The  tawny  warrior,  will  dispute 
No  boundary  with  these.     And   I — ■ 
Who  saw  them   live,  who  felt  them  die  — 
Say,  let  their  unplowed   ashes  sleep." 


ancroft  Library 


IKTRODUOTIOK 

The  pages  of  this  book  record  many  scenes,  events  and  perils 
clustering  about  the  life  of  the  writer  during  a  residence  of  several 
years  as  an  officer  of  the  Federal  Government  in  the  far  "West,  in  the 
territory  embracing  the  Missouri  Kiver  and  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

It  likewise  relates  the  earlier  voyages  of  discovery  in  its  trackless 
depths.  First  by  that  known  as  the  Lewis  and  Clarke  expedition  at  the 
instigation  of  President  Jefferson,  who  sought  a  highway  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  through  our  newly  acquired  territory,  known  as  the  Louisiana 
Purchase ;  and  by  that  of  the  path-finder,  John  C.  Fremont,  who  later 
on  verified  the  dream  of  Jefferson  and  opened  up  a  highway  to  myriads 
of  gold  seekers. 

It  tells  of  the  early  settlement  of  California,  the  Pacific  coast  and 
Northwestern  Territories  consequent  upon  the  discovery  of  the  pre- 
cious metal  in  Sutters'  Mill  race  on  the  Sacramento,  by  Marshall  the 
Mormon,  and  the  swift  settlement  and  development  of  that  land  of 
wealth  and  wonders. 

Of  the  establishment  of  the  Pony  Express,  and  the  great  Over- 
land Mail  Express  lines  that  speedily  followed. 

Of  the  vast  system  of  electric  wires  connecting  the  Orient  and  the 
Occident. 

Of  the  building  of  the  three  great  lines  of  transcontinental  rail- 
roads that  pour  the  mineral  and  agricultural  wealth  of  that  region  into 
the  lap  of  the  world,  and  of  the  national  legislation  promoting  the  vast 
labor. 

It  describes  much  of  the  wild  scenery,  glowing  landscape,  majestic 
waterfalls,  mighty  lakes,  mysterious  mountain  vales,  lost  rivers  and 
natural  wonders  of  the  far  West. 

It  tells  of  massacres  and  assassinations  of  pioneers  who  first  trod 
its  unknown  depths.  Of  Indian  violence  and  treachery  of  the  white 
m^n.  Of  mail-coach  pillage  on  the  highway,  and  the  robbers  of  the 
caiions.  Of  the  vigilantes  of  California,  Montana  and  Idaho,  and 
scenes  and  incidents  connected  with  the  exercise  of  their  mysterious 
and  tremendous  power. 

It  speaks  of  Indian  songs,  legends  and  dances.  Of  the  wonders  of 
Yosemite  and  the  Yellowstone.     Of  great  mining  industries  and  the 


•VI  nrrEODUcnoir. 

vast  productions  of  gold  and  silver  that  enabled  the  Government  to 
resume  "  specie  payment."  It  relates  the  acqm^Sition  of  territory  and 
the  means  whereby  we  acquired  title  to  many  thousands  of  square 
miles  of  territory. 

It  is  a  brief  review  of  the  earlier  history  of  events,  marking  the 
development  of  the  great  "West  and  the  perils  that  beset  the  path  of 
the  American  pioneer. 

It  is  the  product  of  leisure  hours  snatched  from  busy  professional 
and  official  life,  and  is  presented  to  the  reading  American  public  as  an 
exhibit  of  pioneer  life,  truthful  and  original,  in  many  of  whose  excit- 
ing scenes  and  events  the  writer  participated,  and  who  was  inspired  to 
prepare  the  work  from  the  deep  reverence  he  holds  for  the  American 
pioneer.  It  has  been  in  -the  main  carefully  prepared  from  notes  and 
records  made  by  the  author  during  the  prosecution  of  his  official  trusts. 
Wherever  information  has  been  obtained  from  other  sources,  they 
have  been  fully  verified  before  adoption.  It  has  been  in  some  degree 
a  labor  of  love  to  commemorate  the  virtues  and  brave  deeds  of  many 
mountain  friends  who  have  crossed  the  "  divide^''  and  passed  down 
into  the  sweet  Valley  of  Rest. 

It  is  presented  after  the  lapse  of  years,  that  the  generation  which 
has  grown  up'  since  their  fathers'  heroism  opened  the  great  Pacific 
highway  to  the  world  may  know  and  understand  through  "what 
perils  passed  and  dangers  undergone"  the  foundation  of  this  mighty 
Western  empire  was  laid. 

The  Author. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Romantic  Age  of  the  Westeifn  Frontier  —  The  Adventurous  Settlements  of  the 
Pacific  Coast — Discovery  of  Gold,  1848  —  The  Lewis  and  Clarke  Expedition  — 
Fremont's  Expedition  —  Fremont's  Early  Life  and  Marriage —  Terrible  Suffer- 
ings in  the  Sierras — Compelled  to  Eat  as  Food  the  Bodies  of  Their  Dead  Com- 
panions—  Gen.  John  S.  Sutter  —  Marshall,  the  Mormon — General  Sutter's 
Ranch  on  the  Sacramento — The  Pathway  to  the  Pacific. ^ 19 

CHAPTER  IL 

The  Pony  Express— From  River  to  Ocean — The  Story  of  Its  Establishment — The 
Wager  between  the  Ocean  Express  and  the  Overland  Firm  of  Russell,  Majors, 
Waddell  &  Company — The  Continent  to  be  Crossed  in  Fifteen  Days — Fifty 
Thousand  Dollars  the  Wager — Story  of  the  First  Ride — The  Lost  Rider — The 
Drowned  Horse  in  the  Platte  River — The  Wager  Won  by  Twenty  Minutes — 
The  Pony  Express  Assured — The  Pony  Express  Riders,  Sui  Generis — Fac 
Simile  Copy  of  Pony  Express  Envelope  Which  Carried  the  News  of  the  First 
Election  of  Abraham  Lincoln  to  Denver,  then  the  Territory  of  Jefferson — 
Other  Letters — The  Pony  Express  and  the  Fast  British  Mail  from  China  to 
London — The  Pike's  Peak  Gold  Excitement 37 

CHAPTER  m. 

The  Eleutric  Telegraph  —  Early  Experiments — Charles  Morrison,  of  Renfrew, 
Scotland  —  The  First  Experiment  Contemplated  a  Circuit  of  but  Forty 
Yards  —  A  Century  Passes,  and  Telegraphic  Engineering  sends  a  Circuit  Forty 
Hundred  Miles  across  the  Continent — The  Mountainous  Republic  of  Switzer- 
land, the  Sire  of  European  Telegraphy  —  The  Great  Republic  of  America  — 
Its  Pioneers  Lay  the  Transcontinental  Wires — San  Francisco  Prints  Daily 
News  of  London,  Paris,  St.  Petersburg,  Vienna,  Calcutta  and  China — The 
Missouri  &  Western  Telegraph  Company  —  The  First  Office  in  Omaha — The 
Pacific  Telegraph  Company  Chartered  by  Congress — The  Overland  Telegraph 
Company  Organized  in  California  —  Sketch  of  the  Country  through  which  it 
Passed— Exciting  Incidents  and  Adventures  Connected  "with  its  Construc- 
tion —  Mode  of  Testing  the  Wires  by  Ranchmen  —  Discovering  the  Breaks  — 
The  Dream  of  Inspired  Shakespeare  Planting  the  Forces  of  Instantaneous 
Transit  and  Marshaling  Time's  Moments  Realized  by  the  World-girdling 
Telegraph  —  The  Grants  Made  by  Congress 61 

vii 


yiH  COXTEKT8. 

CHAPTER  lY. 

Tke  Overland  ilail,  and  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  Express — Sketcli  of  Countn-  and 
Mining  C^aaps  where  the  Mail  Facilities  were  Supplied  by  Wells,  Fargo  A 
CJo.'s  Mail  Express — The  Frontier  Postoffice  —  The  Postmaster  Who  Was  a 
Mail  Carrier  —  The  Notice  He  Posted  in  a  Trading  Store — His  Correspon- 
dence with  the  Postmaster-General  —  The  Drivers  of  the  Mail  Coaches  and 
Their  Pay  —  The  Way  Beset  by  Indians,  Robbers  and  Road  Agents  —  Robbers 
as  Drivers  —  The  Murder  and  Robbery  of  a  Coach  Load  of  Passengers  in  Port 
Neuf  Canon,  Idaho  Territory — Battle  between  Passengers  and  Robbers  — 
The  Founding  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  Express  —  Its  System  of  Letter 
Carrying — A  Great  Financial  Earthquake  on  the  Pacific  Coast  —  Fall  of 
Noted  Houses  —  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  again  on  Its  Feet — History  of  Pacific 
Express  Companies  —  Louis  McLane — The  Various  Routes  to  the  Pacific. . .     78 

CHAPTER  V. 

Tke  Pacific  Railroads  —  Surveys  and  Explorations  by  the  Grovemment — Acts  of 
Congress — The  Granting  of  Subsidies  —  A  Minute  Description  of  the 
Building  of  each  Road  —  Their  Plans  and  Methods  —  The  Initial  Point 
Established  bj  Abraham  Lincoln  —  His  Appointment  of  Commissioners — 
The  Commencement  of  the  Work — The  Immensity  of  the  Undertaking — 
Hardships  and  Privation  Endured  —  Completion  of  the  Two  Great  Trans- 
continental Lines — Incidents  Connected  with  Their  Construction  —  Driving 
of  the  Two  Gold  Spikes  — The  Cost  of  Each  Road  — The  "Credit  Mobilier" 
—  Its  Mysterious  Methods  —  The  Vast  Sums  of  Money  it  Captured  —  Cakes 
Ames — The  Fabulous  Earnings  of  the  Roads  —  Their  Great  Benefits  to  the 
Country 91 

CHAPTER  VI. 

•Rie  Southern  Pacific — The  Route  Marked  Out  —  Infantile  Efforts  to  Construct  it — 
The  Southern  Commercial  Convention  —  Resolutions  Adopted  —  The  Road 
Begun  —  Work  Suspended  —  The  Texas  Pacific  —  Acts  of  Congress  Relating 
Thereto  —  Description  of  the  Route — Thomas  A.  Scott  —  Other  Connecting 
Railroad  Lines —  The  Land  Grant  by  Texas — Earnings  of  the  Road  —  Eventa 
Connected  with  its  Construction US 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Building  of  the  Northern  Pacific  —  The  First  Projected  Road  across  the  Con- 
tinent—  The  Expedition  of  1853  —  Josiah  Perham's  Labors  —  Proposition  to 
Raise  One  Hundred  Millions  of  Dollars  by  Subscription  —  The  Firm  of  J. 
Cooke  &  Co. — Its  Connection  with  the  Road  —  Placing  of  Eighty  Millions 
of  Bonds  on  the  American  l^Iarket — Some  Methods  that  were  used  in  Plac- 
ing the  War  Loans  of  the  Government  —  The  Memorable  Panic  of  1873  — 
The  Failure  of  Jay  Cooke  «fc  Co.— The  Widespread  Financial  Ruin  that 
Followed — Henry  Villard  —  The  Oregon  Transportation  Company  —  The 
Final  Completion  of  the  Northern  Pacific  over  the  Route  Marked  Out  by 
Thomas  Jefferson. 122 


CONTEXTS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


The  Robbers  of  the  Overland  Routes— My  Mission  from  the  Government  to  Cap- 
ture and  Prosecute  the  Depredators— Sketch  of  the  Country — Exciting 
Scenes— Description  of  Frontier  Towns — The  vast  Army  of  Men  that  -were 
Scattered  over  the  Country  after  the  Close  of  the  War — Murders  and  Assas- 
sinations— Depredations  upon  Overland  Mail  by  Organized  Bands  of  Mail 
Robbers — Railroad  Towns  by  Night — Punishment  of  the  Robbers — A  Des- 
perado's Innocent  Amusement — Commissioned  by  the  Government — Journey 
to  the  far  West,  via  New  York,  Niagara  and  St.  Louis — The  Hudson,  the 
Rhine  of  America— West  Point— Other  Cities 132 

CHAPTER  IX. 

A  Glimpse  of  Horace  Greeley  at  Albany — Niagara  Described — From  the  Falls  to 

Chicago — St.  Louis — Turkish  Bath  in  the  top  Room  of  the  Southern  Hotel.  142 

CHAPTER  X. 

On  the  Missouri^  Story  of  the  Gentle  Missionary  on  the  Missouri  River  Steamboat 
—  The  Baptist  Elder  and  the  Captain  of  the  Ocean  Steamer  in  a  Storm  — 
"  Well,  just  swear  a  little." 151 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Journeying  toward  Julesburg  —  The  Broad  Nebraska  Plains — "Spotted  Tail" — 
Race  on  the  Iron  Road  between  an  Antelope  and  the  "  Mighty  Engine  " — 
Julesburg  by  Gaslight —  The  Coach  Ride  to  Denver —  The  Perilous  Road  — 
Indian  Signs — Indians  Circling  around  Us — Coaches  Halted  and  Horses 
Corraled  —  Waiting  for  the  Sundown  Attack  —  The  City  of  Denver  by 
Daylight  —  Col.  James  T.  Tracy  —  Tall  Church  Spires  and  Closed  Stores  on 
Sunday,  in  the  place  of  the  "Hurdy  Gurdy  "  and  the  "War  Cry"  of  the 
Auctioneers 1.59 

CHAPTER  XII. 

The  City  of  Denver — Pike's  Peak — Garden  of  the  Gods — Williams  Canon  —  The 
Gun-Barrel  Road — Snowy  Range — Long's,  Gray's  and  Pike's  Peaks — Bowlder 
City  and  Bowlder  Canon— The  Wonderful  South  Park— The  Valley  of  the 
Arkansas  —  Fossil  Footprints  —  The  Science  of  Ichnology  —  The  Road  to 
Cheyenne  —  Scenes  of  Indian  Violence— The  Black  Embers  of  the  House 
and  the  Story  of  the  Murder  by  Indians  of  a  Pioneer's  Family 174 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Midnight  Supper  and  Dance  at  La  Porte— The  Prairie  on  Fire— Riding 
Through  the  ♦'  Wave  of  Flame" — Arrival  at  Cheyenne — Primitive  Postoffice 
— The  Story  of  the  "  Lawyer's  Offer  and  the  Justice's  Jurisdiction" — Sudden 
Illness  and  the  Doctor's  Interview — Ordered  to  be  Bled — Dale  Creek  and  Dale 
Valley  in  Summer  and  Winter — Change — Magnificent  Panorma  of  Mountain 
and  Valley — Morning  Dawn  in  the  Mountains 187 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


The  Journey  over  the  Plains  —  The  Spirits  of  Medicine  Bow  Valley  —  Medicine 
Bow  Station  — The  Subterranean  Fort  —  The  Land  of  Antelopes  —  Rock 
Springs— The  Lone  Station  in  the  Wilderness  —  The  Ice  "Waters  of  the 
Alkali— The  Frontier  Traders  who  Left  Their  Gk>ods  to  Gaze  upon  the 
Beauty  of  Two  Lady  Passengers  in  the  Overland  Coach  —  Washakie,  the 
Good  Chief  of  the  Bannocks  —  South  Pass  City—  "  Miner's  Delight  —  Bat- 
tle between  Sioux  and  Bannocks —  Miners  Aid  Washakie  to  Repel  the  Sioux 
—  The  Sioux's  Revenge  —  Massacre  of  Settlers  in  Wyoming 201 

CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Grand  Canon  of  the  Colorado — Review  of  Major  Powell's  Explorations  — 
Stories  and  Legends  of  the  Mystic  Stream — Perils  Passed  —  Battling  with 
the  Waters  —  Groing  Down  the  Falls  —  Sublime  Courage  and  Heroism 214 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Midnight  Adventures  upon  Green  River — Crossing  the  Turbid  Stream  in  a  Skiff — 
Almost  Lost — Loaded  to  the  Gunwales — Miraculously  Saved — The  3Iayor  of 
Cheyenne  and  two  Others  Lost  at  the  same  Spot  a  few  Weeks  Afterward — 
The  Famous  Beauty  at  Green  River  Station,  and  her  Voice  of  Thunder — The 
Murder  of  a  Trader  by  a  Green  River  Desperado — Arrest  of  the  Murderer  by 
the  Civil  Authorities  of  Green  River  City — Seizure  of  the  Prisoner  by  Colonel 
Knight,  Commanding  the  United  States  Camp,  on- the  Banks  of  Green  River 
at  the  Railroad  Crossing — Uprising  of  the  Citizens — Conflict  between  the 
Citizens  and  the  Military — Two  Thousand  Citizens  Meet  and  Arm — Great 
Meeting  on  the  Public  Street — The  Citizens  Demand  to  be  Led  against  the 
United  States  Troops — Colonel  Knight  Loads  his  Cannon  and  Holds  the 
Prisoner — Interview  between  Colonel  Knight  and  a  Deputation  of  Citizens 
of  Green  River — The  3Iatter  Compromised  by  Referring  it  to  Greneral  Mor- 
row, Commanding  the  Forces  at  Fort  Bridger — Greneral  Morrow  Telegraphs 
Colonel  Knight  to  Hold  the  Prisoner  at  all  Hazards — General  Augur  Coun- 
termands General  Morrow's  Order,  and  Restores  the  Prisoner  to  the  Civil 
Authorities  at  Green  River — The  Escape  of  the  Prisoner  through  the 
Treachery  of  the  Deputy  Sheriff — The  Power  of  Money — The  Inquest  upon 
the  Body  of  the  Victim — The  Masonic  Burial  of  the  3Iurdered  Man  in  the 
Old  Burial  Ground  of  Fremont's  Party 234 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
From  Green  River  to  Salt  Lake  —  Fort  Bridger  and  its  Command  —  Stories  of  the 
Indians  —  Old  "Judge"  Carter — The  Indian  Scout,  "Jim  Bridger,"  who 
never  saw  any  bad  Whisky ;  some  of  it  might  be  better  than  another,  but  all 
of  it  was  good  —  Cobble-Stone  Hill  — Through  Echo  and  Weber  Canons  — 
The  wonders  of  the  Canons — The  "Devil's  Gate"  and  Pulpit  Rock — 
"  Rattlesnake  Hills"— The  Great  Dead  Sea  of  the  West  — Zion's  City— The 
Mighty  Wahsatch — Description  of  Public  and  Private  Buildings  —  The 
Tithing  House  and  Temple —  Brigham  Young's  Abode — The  Lion  House —  • 
The  House  with  many  Gables  —  Endowment  House  —  Description  of 
Scenery  in  the  Valley  —  Brigham  Young  —  His  Wives — The  Favorite 
Amelia — The  Romance  of  her  Early  Courtship — The  Homes  and  Avoca- 
tions of  Brigham's  Wives —  Habits  and  Business  Life  of  the  Mormons — Salt 
Lake  Theater  —  John  McCullough 253 


CONTENTS.  Xl 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Utah  Judges  — laterview  Between  Brigham  Young  and  Judge  Titus  —  The  Mor- 
mon Officials  and  Judge  Drake — United  States  Judges  of  Utah  and  Other 
Officials — The  Morrisites  —  Murder  of  Their  Prophet  by  Brigham's  Direc- 
tion—  Other  Murders  —  Great  Excitement  Among  the  People  —  System  of 
Trade  Among  the  Mormons  —  Zion's  Co-operative  Mercantile  Institution  — 
Brigham's  Autocracy 273 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
Camp  Douglas  —  Conflict  between  United  States  Troops  and  Mormon  Officials  — 
Assassinations  by  Mormons  —  The  Danites  —  Origin  of  Their  Order  —  Its 
Mission  and  Its  Murders  in  the  Name  of  the  Church  and  Religion  —  "  Bill" 
Hickman,  the  Chief  of  the  Danite's  —  History  of  His  Life — "Bill  "Hick- 
man's Confession  to  the  United  States  District  Attorney  —  Eighteen  Per- 
sons Assassinated  by  His  Hands  —  He  Kills  His  Own  Brother-in-Law  in 
the  Presence  of  His  Sister,  in  the  Name  of  the  Lord 288 

CHAPTER  XX. 

The  Persecution  of  the  Gentiles  —  The  Life  of  the  Editor  of  the  Gentile  Paper  in 
Salt  Lake  City  Threatened  by  Mormon  Leaders  —  The  Bold  Attitude  of  the 
Paper  —  The  Mormon  Convention  —  Brigham's  Speech  Enrages  the  Multi- 
tude —  Threatened  Destruction  of  the  Gentile  Press  —  Armed  Citizens  Bar- 
ricade the  Entrance  to  the  Editor's  Sanctum  and  Await  the  Attack — Word 
Secretly  Conveyed  to  Brigham  Young  by  Colonel  Lewis,  Commanding  the 
Post  at  Camp  Douglas  that  He  would  Hold  Him  Personally  Responsible  for 
any  Attack  upon  the  Lives  and  Property  of  the  Gentiles  —  Brigham  Alarmed 
and  Calls  off  in  Haste  His  "Dogs  of  War"  — The  Good  Bishop  Wooley, 
the  Friend  of  the  Gentiles  —  His  Sunday  Evening  Discourses  —  His  Quaint 
Speeches ' 800 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

The  Mormon  Religion  —  Tenets  of  the  Mormon  Faith  —  The  Power  of  Brigham 
Young,  Their  Seer  —  His  "  Communion  w'ith  God"  —  The  Blood  Atone- 
ment—  The  Murder  of  a  Wife  by  Her  Husband  —  The  Order  of  Enoch  — 
Brigham's  Great  Wealth  —  George  Peabody's  Statement  of  His  Deposits  in 
The  Bank  of  England , 311 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Utah,  Continued  —  The  New  Movement  —  A  Church  Convulsion  —  Disfellowship 
of  Leading  Mormons  by  Brigham  Young  —  Establishment  of  a  Liberal 
Mormon  Journal  —  The  Sons  of  Joseph  Smith,  the  Founder  of  the  Mormon 
Faith,  Appear  in  Salt  Lake  City  —  Brigham's  Wrath  —  The  Mormon 
Endowment  House  —  Graphic  Exposure  of  the  Institution  where  Polyga- 

*  mous  Marriages  are  Solemnized  —  Confession  of  a  Woman  Wlio  had  Taken 
all  the  Degrees  —  The  Garden  of  Eden  —  Many  Eves  in  the  Garden  — 
Brigham  Appears  as  God  and  Drives  Them  from  the  Garden  —  The  Words 
and  Vows  Uttered  by  the  Candidates  —  The  Oaths  They  Take  to  Sustain 
the  Power  of  Their  Prophet  above  that  of  the  Government 323 


311  CONTESTS. 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
The  "Winter  Ride  from  Salt  Lake  City — Description  of  Scenery — Mormon  Settle- 
ments— Three  Days'  Rain — The  Mormon  Bible — Our  Blooded  Horses — Mon- 
roe Salisbury,  the  Mail  Contractor — The  "  Sleep  **  at  Chicken  Creek — Our 
Pre-empted  Ranch  on  the  Sevier  River 337 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Christmas  Eve  in  Round  Valley — Xo  Bed  to  Sleep  On — Beating  of  Drums  and 
Firing  of  Guns  in  Honor  of  Christmas  Morning — The  Terrible  Storm  in  the 
Mountains — The  Mormon  Fort  in  the  Wilderness,  the  City  of  Refuge — The 
Hospitality  of  its  Kind-hearted  Keeper — His  Beautiful  Daughter — The  Ride 
to  Fillmore  City — To  Beaver — To  St.  George — The  Business  Bishop  of 
Beaver — The  Mormon  Ball  at  Fillmore  City — The  Belles  of  Fillmore  City — 
Our  Dance — Narrow  Escape — The  River  Forded — Return  to  Salt  Lake — 

Spies  on  our  Track 351 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

The  3Iountain  Meadows  Massacre — A  Complete  Account  of  the  Murder  of  over  One 
Hundred  Rich  Emigrants  from  Arkansas  on  Their  way  to  California,  by  a 
Band  of  Mormon  Militia  and  Indians — Believed  to  have  been  Murdered  at 
the  Command  of  Brigham  Young — Young's  Positive  Knowledge  of  the 
Crime — His  Report  as  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  in  the  Territory 
Attributes  the  Bloody  Deed  to  the  Indians,  when  he  Knows  that  the  Dark 
Crime  was  Committed  by  Mormons  at  his  Bidding — The  Emigrants,  "Unsus- 
pecting, Betrayed,  Murdered  and  Plundered — Their  Mangled  Bodies  Permit-' 
ted  to  lie  Unburied,  to  be  Devoured  by  "Wolves  and  Vultures — Destruction 
of  the  "Women  and  Children  First,  and  the  Men  Afterward — The  Confession 
and  Affidavit  of  Bishop  Klingen  Smith — The  Confession  of  John  D.  Lee — 
Ilis  Trial  and  Execution  Twenty-five  Years  after  the  Commission  of  the 
Heinous  Crime — Thrilling  Scenes  Described 368 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

The  Grasshoppers — Graphic  Description  of  the  Descent  upon  the  Valley  of  Salt 
Lake  of  a  vast  Army  of  Grasshoppers,  and  the  Destruction  of  Every  Living 
Green  Thing  in  the  Valley — The  Patience  and  Resignation  of  the  Mormons — 
The  Tales  Told  by  the  ilormons  of  Strange  Miracles  for  their  Preservation 
in  Early  Days — The  Stories  of  the  Stork  and  the  Crickets — The  Sea-GuUs 

and  the  Grasshoppers 390 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

The  Mail  Robers  of  Echo  Cafion — Graphic  Description  of  Their  Arrest  and  Pun- 
ishment— Drivers  in  League  with  Robbers — Narrow  Escape  from  Death — 
Trial  and  Conviction  of  Robbers 399 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
Bear  River  City — Murder  Committed  during  the  Construction  of  the  "Grade" — 
Vigilance  Committee  Executes  Outlaws — The  Town  Fired  by  Armed  Bands 
of  Desperadoes — Arming  of  the  Citizens — Battle  and  Repulsion  of  the  Rob- 
bers— Driven  to  the  Mountains — The  "  Dead  Line  " — Arrival  of  United  States 
Troops  from  Fort  Bridger — Peace  Restored — Midnight  Ride  from  Bear  River 
to  Salt  Lake  City — The  Upset  of  the  Coach  and  Death  of  the  Driver,  Sage  • 
Collyer — Lost — Tramping  Through  the  Deep  Snows  to  Find  the  Wagon 
Ruts— The  Big  Baptist  Elder  and  His  Little  Wife— "  Hold  Down  the  Coach  " 
—The  Perilous  Ride  Through  Echo  Cafion 410 


CONTEKT8.  xiH 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Shoshone  Falls — Snake  River  near  Fort  Hall — Fishing  for  Trout — The  Wondering 
Ducks  upon  the  Waters,  Who  had  Never  before  Seen  the  Face  of  a  White 
Man — Bell's  Landing  above  Shoshone  Falls — Story  of  the  Lone  Miner  on  the 

Banks  of  the  Great  Falls — Dashed  to  Ruin  over  the  Falls ' 43J> 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

Lost  in  the  Mountains  of  Montana — Wanderings — The  Miner's  Camp — My  Guide — 
The  Wild  Beast  in  the  Jungle — The  "Pard's  Regret" — The  Governor's 
Search  Party — The  Telegram  to  Salt  Lake  City — Rescue 438 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

Wonderful  Escape  from  Massacre  by  Indians  in  Arizona — Colonel  Stone — Delegate 
McCormick  of  Arizona — Meeting  in  Washington  City — On  My  Way  to  Join 
Them — Arrival  at  Sacramento — Telegraphic  Order  from  Washington  Direct- 
ing Me  to  Return  and  Proceed  to  Montana  on  Important  Government  Busi 
ness — Colonel  Stone  and  Whole  Party  Murdered  by  Indians 461 

CHAPTER  XXXTI. 

Description  of  the  Yosemite  Valley 474 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
The  First  Vigilance  Committee  in  California  and  the  Great  Vigilance  Committee  in 
1851— The  Tolling  of  the  Fire  Bells— The  Hanging  of  the  Proscribed  o)i 
Sunday  from  the  Windows  of  the  Vigilantes'  Headquarters — Scenes  and 
Events — Names  and  Dates ; 48S 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 
The  Vigilantes  of  Montana — Thrilling  Description  of  the  Acts  of  Violence  on  the 
Part  of  "  Road  Agents,"  or  Robbers  that  led  to  the  Formation  of  the  Com- 
mittee— The  Executions  Ordered  by  its  Decrees 493 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
The  Execution  of  Slade— The  Story  of  His  Life  and  Death— His  Wife— A  New 

and  Correct  Account  of  His  Early  Life  in  Illinois — His  Difficulty  with  Jules  • 
Beni — The  Subsequent  Killing  of  Beni  by  Slade's  Direction— Slade  Con- 
nected with  the  Overland  Express — His  Removal  to  Montana — Freighting 
on  Milk  River— Earns  Large  Sums  of  Money  Which  is  Spent  in  Riotous 
Dissipation — He  Stamps  Upon  the  Writ  of  a  Court  and  Points  His  Pistol 
in  the  Face  of  the  Judge — His  Arrest  at  Virginia  City,  Montana — His 
Execution 502 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Vigilance  Committees  in  Montana,  Continued— Names  and  Dates  of  Executions 
by  its  Decrees— Story  of  the  Snow-l^if  ts  on  the  Columbia — The  Heroic 
Soul  of  the  Robber  Chief — Joaquin  Miller's  Story  of  Their  Escape  from 
Freezing 510 

CHAPTER  XXX VII. 
Indian  Dances — Legendery  Lore  of  Their  Song  and  Dance — Baby  Songs  of  Indian 
Mothers — The  Young  Warrior's  Ordeal — Dance  of  the  Calumet-^Indian 
Rites — The  Scalp  Dance — Origin  of  Scalping — Not  Always  Fatal — Experi- 
ence of  this  Indian  Pastime 5aC 


XIT  COXTKNT8. 

CHAPTER  XXXV  111. 
Sun  Dance  of  Sioux — Its  Religious  Character — The  Wolf  Dance  of  the  Tonkawas 
— The  Snake  Dance  of  the  Moquis — Their  Discovery  by  the  Spanish  Mis- 
sionaries— Diagram  Illustrating  Ceremonies  of  the  'Dance — Story  of  "  Night 
on  the  Plains" — The  Sleeping  Sentinel — Midnight — The  Stake,  Human 
Lives — The  Blackfoot  Indian  Scout — The  Avenging  Fang  of  the  Rattle- 
snake—The  Family  Saved 536 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 
The  Wonders  of  the  Yellowstone — A  Full  Description  of  their  First  Discovery  and 

Publication  to  the  World  by  an  Exploring  Party  from  Montana 554 

CHAPTER  XL. 
Thirty-Seven  Days  of  Peril — Review  of  the  Story  of  Thuman  C.  Everts,  One  of 
the  Party  of  Explorers  from  Montana  Who  Became  Separated  from  His 
Party,  and  Who  Wandered  for  Thirty-Seven  Days  in  the  Unknown  Depths 
of  the  Yellowstone 574 

CHAPTER  XLI. 
First  Days  of  Nevada — Story  of  the  Settlement  and  Scenes    and  Adventures  in 

Silver  Land — Review  of  Ross  Browne's  Description  of  Washoe 595 

CHAPTER  XLIL 
Washoe  and  Reese  River — Many  Interesting  Descriptions  of  Life  in  their  Early 

Settlement 608 

CHAPTER  XLIII. 
Mines  and  Mining  on  the  Pacific  and  in  the  Territories — Laws  Relating  to  ^lining — 
Character  of  Miners — The  Vast  Mineral  Productions — Quicksilver  Mining 
in  California 619 

CHAPTER  XLIV. 
Mines  and  Mining,  Continued — Nevada,  the  Silver  Land  of  the  World — The  Won- 
derful Productions  of  Its  Great  Mines — The  Big  Bonanza  Companies — Dis- 
covery of  Gold  in  Colorado — The  Vast  Silver  and  Lead  Deposits — The  Rise 
of  Denver — Leadville — The  Mineral  Wealth  of  Dakota — The  Black  Hills — 
Gold  and  Silver  Mining  in  Wyoming — Bad  Lands — Bones  of  Great  Animals 
— Mining  in  3Iontana — Its  Vast  3Iineral  Deposits — Virginia  City — The 
Mineral  Resources  of  Idaho^Washington  Territory — Silver  ^lining — Its 
Minerals — Oregon — Utah — Its  Mineral  Wealth — The  Klines  of  New  Mexico 
and  Arizona — Ancient  Races — The  Pathway  of  Civilization — The  Upbuild- 
ing of  Empire , 629 

CHAPTER  XLV. 
The  Course  of  Empire — History  of  the  Acquisition  of  Territory — The  Louisiana 
Purchase — The  Treaty  of  Gaudalupe  Hidalgo— The  Contest  Over  the  Ques- 
tion of  the  Northwestern  Boundary — "Fifty-four  Forty  or  Fight" — The 
First  Discovery  of  the  Columbia  River  by  an  American  Sea  Captain — Our 
Title  Based  in  Part  upon  that  Discovery — The  Wonderful  Growth  of  the 
Pacific  Coast — The  Territories — The  Advancement  of  the  Arts  and  Sciences — 
The  Seats  of  Western  Empire — Learning's  Capitol  on  the  Western  Slope — 
Manifest  Destiny  of  the  Vast  American  Republic 651 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Portrait  of  Colonel  Joux  W.  Clampitt,         .  Frontispiece 

A  Vision  op  Our  Western  Empire,  ..... 

Portrait  of  General  .John  C.  Fremont, 

Portrait  of  General  Sutter,  ..... 

Discovery  of  Gold  at  Sutter's  Mill,    .... 

Sutter's  Fort,    .  .  .  .  .  .  . 

The  Ancient  and  Modern  Knight,  .  .  . 

Pony  Express  Race  from  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  to  Sacramjinto,  l'al 

Portrait  op  Murray, 

Fac-Simile  of  the  First  Letter  Carried  over  the  Plains  by  the  Pony 

Express  Bearing  the  News  op  the  Election  of  Lincoln, 
Portrait  op  Kit  Carson,         ..... 

Lone  Ranchman  Frightened  at  the  Sound  of  His  Own  Voice, 

Laying  the  Telegraph  Across  the  Pi,ains, 

Frontier  Postoffice  on  the  Plains, 

Mountain'  Mail  Carrier, 

Overland  Mail  Express  Arriving  in  Town 

The  Mail  Robbers  of  Port  Neuf  Canon, 

Letter  Carrier  on  Snowshoes, 

Portrait  op  Abraham  Lincoln, 

Weber  Canon,  Union  Pacific  Railroad, 

Driving  the  Golden  Spike,    . 

Portrait  of  Thomas  Jefferson, 

Just  for  Luck,  .... 

On  the  Hudson,  View  from  West  Point, 

Arrival  at  the  Southern  Hotel,  St.  Louis, 

The  Mate  and  the  Clergyman,  . 

Indian  Mode  of  Burial, 

Race  with  an  Antelope, 

Camp  Attacked  by  Indians,    . 

View  of  Pike's  Peak, 

The  Farm  Hand's  Escape  from  Indians, 

A  Martyr  Pioneer, 

Escape  from  a  Prairie  Fire, 

Postoffice  at  Cheyenne, 

Old  Fort,  Laramie, 

Trout  Fishing, 

Home  of  the  Antelope, 

The  Lone  Station  in  the  Wilderness, 

Frontier  Tradesmen  Gazing  with  Rapture  upon  Two  Lady  Travelers, 

Gate  of  Lodore, 

CaiJon  of  the  Colorado  where  Ma.ior  Powell  and  Party  were  Upset, 

BUTTES  OF  THE  CrOSS  IN  THE   ToONI-PIN    Wu   NEAR   Tu   WeEP, 

Marble  Can^on,  ........ 

Climbing  the  Grand  CaSon, 

Crossing  Green  River, 

The  Famous  Beauty  at  Green  River  Station, 

Arrest    of    Murderer — Conflict  Between  United    States    Troops    and 

Citizens, 
Flight  op  Prisoner  and  Deputy  prom  Green  River, 
Echo  CaS^on, 

Devil's  Gate— Weber  CaSon, 
Portrait  of  Brigham  Young, 
Temple  and  Tabernacle,  Salt  Lake  City, 


21 
25 
29 
82 
33 
39 
43 
46 

49 

55 

66 

67 

74 

75 

79 

83 

86 

93 

103 

107 

129 

136 

140 

147 

152 

160 

163 

167 

175 

183 

158 

188 

190 

193 

197 

203 

206 

«09 

219 

233 

226 

229 

231 

237 

242 

245 
251 
255 
259 
265 
269 


1ULU8TKATIONS. 


Murder  of  Morris,  Destruction  op  Morrisites, 

Gextiles  from  Jerusalem, 

A  Dasite.       ...... 

John  D.  Lee,      ..... 

Bill  Hickman,  ..... 

"Bill"  Hickman  Shooting  His  Son  in-law. 

Garment  ot  Polygamic  31arriage  Ceremony,  . 

Robe  of  Polygamic  3Lvrriage  Ceremony,    . 

Sal's  Mother  and  the  Lawyer,  . 

Mormon  Herd,  Southern  Utah, 

The  Storm  in  the  Mountains,     . 

"  You  Must  Ask  the  Bishop," 

Mountain  Meadow  JLassacre,    . 

Grasshoppers*  Descent  upon  Salt  Lake  Valley, 

Discovery  of  Mail  Robbers, 

Mail  Robbers  of  Echo  Canon, 

Vigilance  Committee  Hanging  Desperadoes, 

"I'm  not  much  Hurt  but  the  Whisky  is  Gone,". 

Lost  in  the  Deep  Snow.    .... 

The  Lone  Mixer  Going  over  the  Shoshone  F\lls, 
Standing  Rock,        ..... 

Lost  in  the  Mountains  op  Montana, 

Chinese  Cook,  ..... 

Glimpses  of  the  Yosemite,      ..... 

Vigilantes  Hanging  a  Desperado  in  San  Francisco, 
Masked  Highwayman,  ..... 

execltion  of  hunter,       ..... 

Slade  Defying  the  Court,      ..... 

Night  on  the  Lower  Columbia,  ... 

Robber  Chief  Saving  His  Band  and  Miners  From  Freezing, 
An  Indlcn  Dance,     ...... 

The  Scalp  Dance, 

Bloody  Laurels  of  the  War  Path, 

Indian  Village — Sun  Dance  Pole, 

Indian  Brave  Graduating  by  Self-Tortcre, 

An  Indian  Atonement, 

The  Father  Guarding  His  Family, 

Falls  of  the  Yellowstone,  . 

The  Mud  Volcano, 

The  Giant  Geyser, 

Fan  Geyser,  Yellowstone  Region, 

The  Grotto  Geyser,  Yellowstone  Region, 

Mountain  Lion,        .... 

A  Night  of  Terror,     .... 

"  He  Beheld  the  Blazing  Eyes  of  a  Forest  M  nster,' 

Everts  Rushing  From  the  Forest  Fihe, 

Imaginary  Companions, 

Everts'  Rescue, 

Mining  Town, 

Succor  of  Ross  Browne  by  the  Jew, 

Camel  Train, 

Struck  it  Rich, 

The  Trapper, 

Mount  Hood, 

Rival  Fur  Traders. 

England  and  the  United 

P^emont's  Peak, 


States  at  Montehev. 


ECHOES 


FROM     THE 


ROCKY  MOUNTAINS 


CHAPTER  1. 

THE  ROMANTIC  AGE  OF  THE  WESTERN  FRONTIER  — THE  ADVENTUROUS  SET- 
TLEMENTS OF  THE  PACIFIC  COAST  — DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD,  1848  — THE  LEWIS 
AND  CLARKE  EXPEDITION  —  FREMONT'S  EXPEDITION  —  FREMONT'S  EARLY 
LIFE  AND  MARRIAGE -TERRIBLE  SUFFERINGS  IN  THE  SIERRAS— COMPELLED 
TO  EAT  AS  FOOD  THE  BODIES  OF  THEIR  DEAD  COMPANIONS  -  GEN.  JOHN  S. 
SUTTER— MARSHALL,  THE  MORMON— GENERAL  SUTTER'S  RANCH  ON  THE 
SACRAMENTO  -  THE  PATHWAY  TO  THE  PACIFIC. 

The  romantic  age  of  the  Western  frontier  has  disappeared  for- 
ever. Its  last  vestige  was  destroyed  by  the  golden  spike,  driven  in 
the  ides  of  September,  1883,  on  the  northern  line  of  railroad  beneath 
the  shadow  of  the  white  head  of  Mount  Paul,  where,  amid  the  wildest 
scenery,  its  own  icy  springs  and  cascades  mingle  with  the  waters  of 
the  Independence  and  the  Deer  Lodge,  and  thence,  through  broad  Pend 
d'Oreilleandthe  swift  Columbia,  flow  on  together  within  the  bosom  of 
the  Pacific,  and  lose  their  identity  in  its  vast  eternity. 

Upon  the  adventurous  footprints  of  Jonathan  Carver,  in  1763,  fol- 
lowed the  dream  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  Its  realization  came  just  within 
the  closing  outlines  of  a  century,  whose  history  has  been  the  grand- 
est yet  vouchsafed  to  man  in  the  struggle  and  mastery  of  mind  over 
matter. 

Within  this  period,  however,  the  broadest  field  of  romance  and  of 
chivalry  was  opened  up  to  the  unconquerable  spirits  of  the  age.  For 
wild  adventure,  thrilling  conflict  and  personal  daring  it  was  unsur- 
passed in  history,  i^either  the  age  of  Arthur,  nor  Charlemagne,  nor 
Amadis  of  Gaul,  nor  the  barons  of  the  feudal  times,  nor  the  knights  of 

19 


20  ECHOES  FROM  THE  KOCKY  MOCXTAIXS. 

the  middle  ages,  with  their  traces  of  stoic  philosophy,  nor  the  heroes 
of  Chaucer,  of  Germanic  traditions  or  classical  antiquity,  nor  the 
knights  of  the  crusades,  crowned  with  their  religious  orders,  nor  the 
legends  of  the  ix)ets  from  the  days  of  Trojan  heroes  to  the  trouba- 
dours, whose  romantic  deeds  shine  out  as  a  bright  light  in  the  gloom  of 
the  dark  ages,  can  obscure  by  comparison  the  chivalrous  and  romantic 
deeds  of  the  American  pioneers  preceding  and  following  the  discovery 
of  gold  upon  the  Pacific  coast. 

These  were  the  unawed  men  who  pushed  their  way  through  the 
unbroken  wilderness  of  a  strange  land,  through  hostile  Indian  bands, 
across  rapid  mountain  streams  swollen  to  their  utmost  verge,  over  the 
crags  of  ice-bound  mountains,  through  the  cypress  depths  of  dark,  unex- 
plored canons,  beyond  trackless  wastes  of  alkali  deserts  and  treacher- 
ous quicksands,  through  valleys  whose  breath  was  death,  and  across 
chasms  from  whose  rocky  depths  came  the  sound  of  hissing,  boUing 
waters  and  the  cataract's  roar. 

And  yet,  amid  all  this  hazard  and  toil  and  ceaseless  endeavor  — 
past  the  myriad  milestones  of  unburied  bones  of  souls  who  had  laid 
down  at  once  their  pack  and  the  burden  of  life — past  the  wreck  of 
wheel  and  truncheon,  over  which  the  storms  of  the  plains  had  swept 
and  whitened  in  their  sohtude — rode  for  three  thousand  miles  the 
unruffled  knight  of  wild  American  adventure,  the  bravest  soldier  of 
fortune,  whose  stalwart  arm  and  invincible  courage  had  carved  the 
paths  of  empire,  following  the  dim  trail  of  a  human  footprint  until 
with  the  years  it  broadened  into  a  highway  of  civQization ;  battling 
with  the  dangers  and  privations  of  his  perilous  journey  across  the  con- 
tinent, as  if,  instead  of  continuous  peril  and  starvation,  and,  perchance, 
sudden  death  at  the  hands  of  red  or  white  assassin,  a  jeweled  crown,  a 
kingly  sceptre  and  robes  of  royalty  waited  him  at  its  farther  end. 

It  was  not,  however,  the  search  for  power  that  led  thither  the 
bold,  adventurous  spirit.     It  was  a  mightier  incentive. 

Few,  indeed,  of  the  hardy  bands  of  pioneers  who  journeyed  beyond 
those  trackless  wastes  dreamed  of  the  empire  that  time  would  unfold 
on  the  shores  of  the  distant  Pacific ;  that  while  Anglo-Saxon  spirit 
and  enterprise  should  lay  its  hand  of  industry  upon  the  distant  line  of 
continent,  where  the  horizon  drops  into  the  sea,  liberty  and  law  would 
go  hand  in  hand  to  fashion  the  rude  elements  of  material  society, 
mold  the  manhood  and  form  the  superstructure   of  government,  in 


A  VISION  OF  OUR  WESTERN'  EMPIRE. 
21 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  23 

accordance  with  the  progressive  ideas  of  civilization  in  the  home  val- 
leys they  had  left  behind,  in  their  conquest  over  nature  in  the  daring 
search  for  gold. 

The  discovery  of  gold  in  large  quantities  upon  the  Pacific  coast 
was  the  mighty  incentive  that  led  thither  the  adventurous  American 
pioneer.  Men  of  the  coolest  blood  and  bravest  spirit  flocked  to  the 
new  £1  Dorado.  Xot  since  the  walls  of  Eome  fell  beneath  the  imperial 
blows  of  Tudor  and  Plantagenet  had  such  a  scene  been  presented  as 
the  crumbling  of  ancient  mountain  walls  beneath  the  prowess  and 
genius  of  their  descendants.  They  differed,  however,  from  their 
ancient  ancestry  in  this :  this  conquered  empire  was  one  of  peace, 
not  of  war.  The  enemy  they  subdued  was  that  of  nature,  not  one  of 
armed  battalions.  They  were  crusaders,  whose  aspirations  were 
molded,  governed  and  controlled  by  the  sovereign,  progressive  ideas 
of  the  glowing  century  in  which  they  lived.  They  were  soldiers  of 
industry,  drilled  by  labor  and  hardship,  and  transformed  from  a  ciia- 
otio  mob  of  men  into  an  organized  and  disciplined  army,  with  mighty 
weapons  of  industry,  who  went  forth  only  to  industrial  conquest. 
They  possessed  themselves  of  the  richest  mineral-bearing  lands,  and 
located  their  mining  camps.  They  built  villages,  towns  and  cities  so 
far  beyond  the  pale  of  civilization  that  for  many  years  they  had  no 
local  existence  upon  the  land  maps  of  the  government.  All  the  indus- 
trial labors  of  the  human  race  were  pursued  with  tireless  energy  in 
this  remote  wilderness.  Forests  were  felled,  rivers  bridged,  mills 
constructed,  water-courses  changed,  canals  dug,  flumes  built,  mines 
worked,  and  the  virgin  soil,  which  had  slept  unbroken  amid  everlast- 
ing silence  since  the  mountains  and  stars  watched  over  its  birth,  was, 
for  the  first  time  in  all  the  ages,  upthrown  to  the  dew  and  the  sun- 
shine. 

Such  was  the  advent  of  the  forces  of  civilization  upon  the  Pacific 
coast,  and  the  strangest  part  of  the  phenomena,  that  to  be  most  won- 
dered at,  and  yet  in  itself  illustrating  in  a  high  degree  the  cohesive 
power  and  paramount  influence  oi  t\e  institutions  of  our  government, 
is  the  fact,  patent  to  mankind,  that  for  twenty-five  years  this  tide  of 
civilization  moved  on  in  all  the  grandeur  of  itc  rapid  and  complete 
development  in  the  upbuilding  of  empire,  in  its  barter  and  sale  and 
its  vast  accretions  of  wealth  under  laws  framed  by  itself  and  alone 
enforced  by  the  general  sentiment  of  the  community. 


24  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUIfTAIXS. 

Amid  all  the  excitement  of  a  mining  camp,  the  decision  of  a 
miner's  court,  composed  of  a  few  leading  men  chosen  from  among  the 
miners  to  adjust  the  claims  of  conflicting  interests,  were  promptly 
obeyed.  In  after  3' ears  when,  over  this  vast  field  of  human  industry  in 
which  the  tireless  energy  of  the  race  had  found  the  means  of  develop- 
ment, the  United  States  government  had  spread  the  aegis  of  its  laws 
and  institutions  and  the  forms  of  its  liberal  rule,  and  by  organic  act 
courts  of  record  were  established  to  enforce  the  statute  law,  the  early 
decisions  of  the  miners'  court,  framed  amid  the  rude  elements  of  the 
incongruous  and  complex  society  of  that  period,  were  invariably 
accepted  as  law  and  precedent,  although  involving  many  millions  of 
value. 

The  transition  from  industry  organized  upon  a  small  scale  to  the 
larger  industries  of  compact  labor  extending  its  diffusive  energies 
from  mining  camp  to  city,  from  city  to  State,  is  exemplified  in  the  vast 
creation  of  States  and  Territories  upon  the  Pacific  coast,  and  in  that 
fruitful  field  of  industry  and  development,  peopled  with  many  thou- 
sands of  human  beings  and  dotted  with  towns,  villages  and  cities, 
which  but  a  httle  while  ago  was  placed  upon  our  maps  as  an  unknown 
and  mysterious  land,  within  whose  weird  borders  the  white  men  had 
never  passed ;  where  savage  tribes  were  said  to  hold  their  wild 
or^es  of  blood,  and  cannibals  dwelt,  who  loved  the  taste  of  human 
flesh ;  a  land  given  up  to  darkness  and  death — a  broad  black  belt  of 
territory  indicated  upon  our  maps  as  the  terra  incognita^  now  a  land 
of  peopled  towns,  of  wealth  and  riches,  of  labor  and  prosperity,  of 
happy  homes  and  sunshine. 

And  this  is  what  hath  been  given  us  by  the  mighty  forces  of  civili- 
zation first  displayed  and  set  in  motion  in  an  inhospitable  land  by 
that  chivalrous  crusader — the  American  pioneer  and  gold-seeker ! 

During  the  administration  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  at  his  urgent 
appeal,  Congress  voted  an  appropriation  for  the  initial  survey  of  the 
vast  wilderness  lying  between  the  Missouri  River  and  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
by  an  expedition  to  discover  a  practicable  route  for  travel  and  traffic, 
to  follow  the  Missouri  River  to  its  source,  pass  over  the  mountain  head- 
lands and  descend  the  water-courses  of  the  western  coast  until  they 
merged  into  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

The  expedition  that  accomplished  this  perilous  work  is  known  as 
the   "Lewis  and  Clark   Expedition  of  1804."     Merriweather  Lewis 


.      /£.i^^s*^^^^^>:?>^^- 


25 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  27 

was  a  native  of  Yirginia,  and  in  the  year  1800  a  captain  in  the  regular 
army  of  the  United  States.  Shortly  afterward  he  became  Jeffersons 
private  secretary,  and  so  impressed  the  President  with  his  qualifica- 
tions for  the  great  task  that  he  appointed  him  leader  of  the  expedi- 
tion to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

William  Clark  was  likewise  a  native  of  Yirginia,  and  a  lieutenant 
of  artillery  in  the  regular  army,  and  was  ordered  by  the  President  to 
jom  the  Kocky  Mountain  Expedition,  and  it  is  said  that  to  his  thor- 
oufirh  knowledsfe  of  the  Indians  and  their  habits  the  success  of  the 
expedition  was  mainly  due.  In  1813  he  was  appointed  governor  of 
Missouri,  and  held  the  oflSce  until  the  complete  organization  of  the 
State  government.  In  1822  he  was  made  superintendent  of  Indian 
affairs,  which  office  he  continued  to  hold  until  his  death. 

Poor  Lewis  met  a  sadder  fate.  Brilliant,  brave  and  generous,  he 
was  withal  subject  to  periods  of  great  mental  depression,  in  one  of 
which  he  slew  himself,  near  Nashville,  Tennessee.  Before  this,  how- 
ever, he  rose  to  considerable  distinction,  was  made  governor  of  the 
Territory  of  Louisiana,  and  Jefferson's  own  hand  traced  the  lines  of 
his  memorial,  which  was  published  in  1814,  together  with  the  ''Narra- 
tive of  the  Lewis  and  Clark  Expedition." 

The  wonderful  journey  they  made  across  the  unknown  continent 
began  at  St.  Louis,  then  but  a  trading  post,  early  in  the  month  of 
May,  1804.  They  wintered  at  a  point  fifty  miles  above  the  present 
location  of  the  town  of  Bismarck,  on  the  Missouri  Kiver.  After  innu- 
merable hardships  and  many  perils  by  field  and  flood  and  Indian 
treachery,  on  the  7th  of  November,  1805,  they  beheld  for  the  first 
time  the  broad  waters  of  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

Their  homeward  journey  began  in  the  month  of  March,  of  the 
year  following,  and  they  reached  St.  Louis  again  in  the  month  of 
September  of  the  same  year,  thus  traversing  the  vast  wilderness, 
exploring  an  untrodden  field,  and  revealing  the  hidden  mysteries  of  a 
land  of  silence  and  darkness.  They  returned  over  the  route  marked 
out  by  the  hand  of  Jefferson,  and  over  which  the  present  Northern 
Pacific  Railway  now  runs.  Thus  has  the  dream  of  Jefferson  been 
realized  within  a  century,  along  the  northern  border  of  what  was  once 
"  The  Great  American  Desert."  It  was,  however,  left  to  a  familiar 
figure  of  contemporary  history  to  pierce  the  rim  of  darkness  surround- 
ing the  great  black  belt  of  territory  lying  central  on  the  continent 


28  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

between  the  Missouri  and  the  Paxjific.  To  John  C.  Fremont  are  this 
honor  and  this  fame  accorded,  and  the  lofty  peak  which  he  ascended, 
13,750  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  bears  his  name,  and  becomes 
the  eternal  monument  of  his  genius,  courage  and  resolution. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  do  more  than  to  refer  to  the  early  life  of  the 
great  "  Pathfinder,"  as  his  late  achievements  are  familiar  to  all.  In 
1840  he  received  from  President  Yan  Buren  a  commission  as  lieutenant 
in  the  Corps  of  Topographical  Engineers.  While  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington, preparing  reports  of  certain  explorations  in  which  he  had  been 
engaged,  he  met  Jessie  Benton,  the  daughter  of  the  senator  from 
Missouri.  At  that  time  she  was  a  pretty  girl  of  sixteen  3'ears,  and, 
fascinated  by  the  gallant  address  of  the  young  lieutenant,  she  engaged 
herself  to  him  in  marriage.  This  act  greatly  enraged  the  senator,  and 
he  endeavored  to  break  up  the  match  by  causing  Fremont  to  be  sent 
upon  a  distant  expedition,  to  examine  the  Des  Moines  Biver.  He, 
however,  completed  the  work  within  a  year,  and  returned  to  claim  his 
bride.  The  opposition  of  the  senator  still  continuing,  he  contracted  a 
secret  marriage.  Then,  fired  with  the  hope  of  distinguishing  himself 
by  some  brave  movement  in  the  line  of  his  profession,  and  of  present- 
ing a  great  contribution  to  the  geographical  science  of  the  world, 
he  planned  a  geographical  survey  of  the  Territories  of  the  United 
States. 

These  plans  were  partially  approved,  and  he  was  directed  to 
explore  the  Rocky  Mountains,  particular  attention  to  be  given  to  the 
South  Pass,  with  a  view  to  an  overland  communication  with  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  This  he  accomplished  with  but  a  handful  of  men,  discovering 
the  route  to  California  through  the  great  South  Pass,  followed  soon 
after  by  tens  of  thousands  of  gold-seekers.  His  reports  attracted  great 
attention  both  at  home  and  abroad. 

In  the  following  year  (1843)  he  planned  a  second  expedition  to 
explore  the  unknown  country  lying  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and 
the  Pacific  coast  —  a  land  of  forms  and  shadows,  wild  and  weird,  and 
open  alone  to  the  speculations  of  those  who  had  trodden  upon  its 
borders. 

He  started  with  his  band  of  men  in  the  month  of  May,  explored 
the  Kansas  River,  went  through  the  South  Pass,  and,  after  an  unbroken 
joumey^  of  1.700  uules,  on  the  7th  of  September  came  in  sight  of  the 
saline  waters  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake. 


GENERAL   SUTTER. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIKS.  31 

At  this  point  lie  diverged  northward  to  the  tributaries  of  the 
Columbia  River  as  far  as  Fort  Vancouver,  and  in  the  month  of  Novem- 
ber began  his  return  through  an  unknown  region  barred  by  rugged 
mountain  ridges.  Falling  into  deep  snows  in  a  barren  and  desolate 
country,  with  death  from  cold  and  starvation  awaiting  his  farther 
progress,  he  concluded  that  the  lives  of  his  party  depended  upon  their 
ability  to  cross  the  snowy  range  and  proceed  to  San  Francisco,  instead 
of  the  United  States.  The  Indians  declared  the  mountains  had  never 
been  crossed  by  a  human  being  and  refused  to  guide  them.  His  lofty 
spirit,  however,  overcame  all  obstacles,  and,  traversing  the  snow  deeps 
of  the  lofty  range,  in  forty  days  his  party  reached  Sutter's  Fort,  on  the 
Sacramento,  more  like  ghosts  than  living  human  beings,  having  been 
reduced  to  skeletons  by  starvation. 

The  history  of  this  man  is  full  of  interest.  His  name  was  John 
Augustus  Sutter.  He  was  born  in  Baden  in  the  year  1803,  and  became 
an  officer  in  the  Swiss  service,  where  he  served  honorably  for  a  number 
of  years.  In  1834  he  emigrated  to  this  country,  and  established  him- 
self as  a  trader  at  Santa  Fe.  In  1838  he  pushed  his  way  to  the  Pacific 
coast,  thence  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  far  up  afterward  to  unex- 
plored Alaska,  on  the  return  voyage  from  which,  in  1839,  he  was 
wrecked  in  San  Francisco  Bay.  Here  he  determined  to  locate,  and 
obtaining  a  grant  of  land  from  the  Mexican  government  he  established, 
in  1841,  on  the  spot  where  Sacramento  now  stands,  a  settlement  he  called 
New  Helvetia.  He  was  made  governor  of  Northern  CaUfornia  by  the 
Mexicans,  and  when  by  treaty  at  the  close  of  the  Mexican  War  it  passed 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States,  he  was  appointed  by  our 
government  Alcalde  and  Indian  agent.  His  settlement  was  flourishing; 
he  built  large  saw  mills ;  became  the  proprietor  of  other  large  indus- 
trial interests,  and  gathered  within  his  control  considerable  wealth. 
He  became  noted  far  and  near  for  his  generous  nature  and  his  charita- 
ble deeds,  and  no  lost  or  wearied  traveler  or  sojourner  in  that  remote 
region  was  ever  refused  food  and  shelter  and  warm-hearted  encourage- 
ment. In  the  month  of  February,  1848,  Marshall,  who  had  contracted 
to  build  a  saw  mill  for  General  Sutter  on  the  Sacramento,  while  dig- 
ging the  mill  race  discovered  in  the  sand  particles  of  gold.  Upon 
further  examination  it  was  ascertained  that  the  whole  bed  of  the  stream 
was  filled  with  rich  deposits  of  the  precious  metal,  which  likewise  spread 
over  a  large  area  of  territory. 


32 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 


Then  began  that  wonderful  hegira  to  the  new  El  Dorado^  more 
particularly  described  in  the  chapter  on  mining.  But  this  great  dis- 
covery, which  enriched  so  many  of  mankind,  impoverished  the  gener- 
ous proprietor  of  Sutter's  Mills.  His  mills  and  workshops,  once  fuU 
of  activity,  became  idle  for  the  want  of  labor  to  successfully  run  them. 
He  could  not  afford  the  wages  that  men  could  earn  working  in  the 
mines.  His  works  by  degrees  were  destroyed  and  his  lands  pre- 
empted by  the  gold-diggers  who,  seeking  the  precious  metals  in  their 


DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD  AT  SUTTER'S  BULL. 


hiding  places,  found  them  within  his  possessions.  Year  b}'^  year  every- 
thing of  value  was  swept  from  the  noble-hearted  j)ioneer,  and  in  his 
old  age  he  was  left  penniless,  and  in  1873  he  removed  from  California 
to  Pennsylvania.  Often  have  I  beheld  this  venerable  man  with  frosted 
head  standing  within  the  halls  of  Congress,  appealing  in  his  old  age 
and  poverty  for  a  pittance  of  that  which  had  been  taken  from  him 
under  the  forms  of  law.  Finally,  Congress  granted  him  an  annual 
pension  of  $3,000.  He  lived  but  a  year  to  enjoy  the  "bitter  little  that 
of  life  remained."  "Worn  with  life's  cares  and  anxieties,  and  the 
betrayals  which  in  his  advanced  years  fell  heavily  upon  him,  this  brave 


dS 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  35 

soldier  of  the  wilderness,  whose  arms  of  industry  flashed  far  brighter 
in  the  sun  of  civilization  than  war's  plumed  helmet,  laid  down  his 
burden  at  seventy-seven  and  went  to  repose  in  the  land  of  shadows. 

Warmed  back  again  into  life  and  health  by  the  old  General's 
hospitality,  and  obtaining  a  new  outfit,  Fremont  proceeded  south- 
ward along  the  western  range  of  the  Sierras  and  discovered  a  gap  in 
that  range,  through  which  he  passed  into  the  great  basin  beyond,  and 
thence  safely  to  the  Missouri,  reaching  Washington  City  again  on  the 
9th  of  August,  1844. 

The  same  3^ear  he  organized  another  expedition  and  explored  the 
great  basin  and  the  maritime  region  of  California.  The  war  with 
Mexico  intervening,  it  was  not  until  1848  that  he  organized  another 
exploring  party.  He  now  sought  a  passage  to  California  along  the  upper 
waters  of  the  Rio  Grande.  In  this  attempt  to  cross  the  snow-covered 
Sierras  the  guide  lost  his  way,  and  the  party  was  subjected  to  the  most 
terrible  suffering,  compelled  by  starvation  to  subsist  upon  the  flesh  of 
their  dead  companions,  one-third  of  their  number  perishing  from 
hunger  and  cold. 

Dissatisfied  with  the  results  of  this  effort,  the  following  year 
he  organized  another  party  of  thirty  men,  and  in  the  early  part 
of  that  year,  after  a  most  determined  effort,  he  succeeded  in  discover- 
ing a  pass  over  the  mountain  ranges  to  the  Sacramento. 

Thus  was  the  road  opened  to  the  myriad  gold-seekers,  all  the 
way  from  the  Missouri  to  the  Pacific,  by  the  indomitable  energy  and 
most  persistent  endeavor  of  the  remarkable  man  whose  place  in 
history  will  be  greater  than  that  of  an  Achilles. 

But  what  of  the  brave  men  who  shared  with  him  all  the  dangers 
and  privations  of  his  perilous  labor? — except  that  hero  of  the  plains, 
the  faithful  friend,  guide  and  companion  of  Fremont,  the  chivalrous 
Kit  Carson  —  their  names  may  not  live  in  history.  No  monument  of 
the  everlasting  hills  will  bear  their  fame  to  Time's  remotest  age.  But 
they  were  the  brave  companions  of  Fremont,  who  made  success 
possible,  and  without  whose  aid  he  would  have  perished  in  his  vast 
endeavor. 

Some  of  them  lie  in  little  graveyards  in  the  heart  of  the 
mountains,  by  the  side  of  torrent  streams  that  forever  sing  a  wild 
dirge   to   their  memory ;    some    in    green    graves   covered  with  the 


36  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAINS. 

flowers  of  remembrance,  far  beyond  the  crags  over  which  they  strode 
more  like  gods  than  men ;  some  sleep  in  their  own  home  valleys ; 
some  of  the  gallant  band  are  yet  in  the  active,  busy  world,  awaiting 
the  final  summons  beyond  the  snow  and  the  frost  line.  Wherever 
they  are  they  will  be  recalled  as  heroes  of  the  storm-beaten  heights  — 
gods  of  the  solitude  greater  than  a  Spartan  band  —  through  whose 
mountain  passes  run  the  electric  wires  of  memory,  stretching  along 
the  Unes  of  the  centuries,  and  whose  blood-dyed  walls  loom  up  grander 
in  thought  than  ancient  Thermopylae. 


OHAPTEB  IT. 

THE  PONY  EXPRESS— FROM  RIVER  TO  OCEAN  — THE  STORY  OF  ITS  ESTABLISH- 
MENT-THE  WAGER  BETWEEN  THE  OCEAN  EXPRESS  AND  THE  OVERLAND 
FIRM  OF  RUSSELL,  MAJORS,  WADDELL  &  COMPANY  — THE  CONTINENT  TO  BE 
CROSSED  IN  FIFTEEN  DAYS— FIFTY  THOUSAND  DOLLARS  THE  WAGER-STORY 
OF  THE  FIRST  RIDE-THE  LOST  RIDER— THE  DROWNED  HORSE  IN  THE  PLATTE 
RIVER  — THE  WAGER  WON  BY  TWENTY  MINUTES  — THE  PONY  EXPRESS 
ASSURED  — THE  PONY  EXPRESS  RIDERS,  SUl  GENERIS— F AC  SIMILE  COPY 
OF  PONY  EXPRESS  ENVELOPE  WHICH  CARRIED  THE  NEWS  OF  THE  FIRST 
ELECTION  OF  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  TO  DENVER,  THEN  THE  TERRITORY  OF 
JEFFERSON -OTHER  LETTERS  — THE  PONY  EXPRESS  AND  THE  FAST  BRITISH 
MAIL  FROM  CHINA  TO  LONDON-THE  PIKES  PEAK  GOLD  EXCITEMENT. 

The  red  man  and  the  frontier  have  faded  together.  Wars  and 
wildernesses  have  likewise  disappeared.  Along  the  great  lines  of 
railroad  plowing  their  lightning  way  through  those  once  vast  soli- 
tudes all  is  life  and  activity.  Towns  and  cities  have  invaded  their 
silent  paths.  Men  who  followed  the  faint  trail  of  civilization  have 
themselves  beheld  the  great  tide  roll  over  their  own  footprints,  and 
view  with  wonder  its  ever  advancing  waves.  They  are  no  longer  pil- 
grims upon  an  inhospitable  sod.  They  have  annihilated  space.  They 
live  in  the  new  land  of  destiny,  yet  breathe  in  their  old  home  val- 
leys. At  each  station  they  hear  the  click  of  a  wire  tongue  repeating 
its  cabalistic  speech  3,000  miles  away — man  bargaining  with  man 
across  a  continent  about  a  mule,  a  mill-site  or  a  million  dollars  of 
bonds.  He,  who  but  a  few  years  ago  trod  these  forlorn  paths  without 
a  friend  or  human  habitation  in  sight  for  countless  miles,  now  sits 
beneath  the  glare  of  an  electric  light  and  reads  the  daily  press,  which 
with  its  own  bright  light  has  come  to  illumine  the  mind  and  tell  the 
world  of  its  matchless  power  and  genius. 

Schools,  churches  and  opera  houses  have  likewise  appeared  to 
enlighten  the  multitude  and  mold  the  morals  of  the  new-born  commu- 
nity. Hotels  and  banks  now  stand  and  Avelcorae  guests  pour  their 
gold  over  the  very  spots  where  but  a  little  while  ago  the  wolf  and  the 
bear  prowled  and  the  wild  buffalo  roamed  in  freedom.  "What  a  wonder- 
ful scene  now  uplifts  its  romantic,  idealistic,  yet  solid  picture  before  the 

37 


38  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

mental  vision  of  the  wonder-stricken  pioneer,  who  lately  delved  amid 
the  mountain  rocks  or  trod  the  level  plains  in  the  awful  stillness  that 
fell  around  him  like  a  mantle  of  sombre  cloud .  And  now  the  vast 
S3'stem  of  railroads,  electric  wires  and  mails  all  rush  along  together ! 
What  an  advent  to  him  was  the  era  of  the  first  daily  mail  from  the 
Missouri  to  the  Pacific ! 

Who  among  the  old  pioneers  and  settlers  upon  the  plains  does  not 
remember  the  contracting  firm  of  Russell,  Majors,  WaddeU  <fe  Co.,  at 
once  the  earhest  and  largest  contracting  firm  in  the  great  West,  their 
business  amounting  to  many  millions  of  dollars  annually  ? 

Who  among  the  early  business  men  of  the  plains  and  Pacific 
coast  now  aUve  does  not  remember  how  very  irregular  were  the  mails 
— the  Southern  stage  line  carrying,  or  pretending  to  carry,  a  weekly 
mail  which  they  were  fortunate  indeed  to  get  through  safel}'^  at  great 
cost,  but  f requenth^  lost  on  the  way  ? 

How  often  have  I  heard  the  story  from  those  who  were  eye- 
witnesses of  the  manner  in  which  the  first  daily  mail  was  carried  across 
the  country  by  the  "  Pony  Express."  There  were  different  vereions 
of  this  remarkable  event,  but  the\'  were  all  grouped  about  and  cen- 
tered upon  the  same  facts  and  results. 

A  part  of  the  story  related  by  old  settlers  and  travelers  told  of 
the  great  spirit  of  rivalry  existing  between  the  stage  and  ocean  lines 
of  mail  carriers  to  the  Pacific  coast — the  steamers  conveying  the 
mails  from  ]S'ew  York  harbor  to  the  Isthmus,  thence  overland  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  and  up  the  Western  coast  by  steamer,  through  the 
Golden  Gate  to  the  city  of  San  Francisco.  The  mail  line  b}"  stages 
extended  through  Xew  Mexico  and  Arizona,  thence  through  Southern 
California  to  the  upper  settlements  on  the  coast. 

The  firm  of  contractors  above  alluded  to,  Russell,  Majors,  Wad- 
dell  &  Co.,  held  control  of  the  central  route  by  way  of  Julesbury,  Fort 
Kearney,  Fort  Laramie  and  Salt  Lake.  It  was  not  believed  that  this 
route  was  practicable  for  a  mail  route,  and  the  suggestion  of  a  daily 
mail  was  met  with  derision.  This  firm,  however,  had  sufficient  faith 
in  its  ultimate  success  to  invest  nearly  $100,000  in  equipping  the  line 
with  stock  and  stations  for  the  world-renowned  Pony  Express,  which 
began  its  wonderful  work  in  the  month  of  April,  1860,  a  year  before 
the  bells  were  j^ealing  the  first  wild  notes  of  war  in  the  distant  States. 
If  it  did  not  succeed  to  a  brilliant  career  and  pile  up  vast  wealth  for  its 


THK  ANCIENT  AND  MODERN  KNIGHT. 


38 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  41 

projectors,  it  at  least  accomplished  that  which  has  proven  of  more  per- 
manent value  to  mankind  —  it  paved  the  way  for  the  wire,  the  stages 
and  the  railroad,  which  have  enriched  the  republic  by  accumulated 
wealth  and  empire,  and  showered  countless  blessings  upon  succeeding 
generations. 

But  as  this  scheme  was  a  new  idea,  and  involved  strange  business 
elements  in  its  mixture,  it  was  quite  natural  that  the  proprietors  of  the 
ocean  line  of  steamers  should  take  an  unusual  interest  in  the  proceed- 
ings and  results. 

The  owners  of  the  Pony  Express  declared  that  by  their  way  Salt 
Lake  could  be  reached  in  ten  days  from  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  and  the 
Pacific  coast  in  five  days  more.  The  Ocean  Express  declared  that  it 
could  not  be  done  in  the  time  stated,  and  wagered  $50,000  on  the  gen- 
eral result.  Now,  $50,000  was  quite  a  sum  of  money  in  those  days  of 
small  pretension  and  strict  economy,  before  the  vast  war  warrants 
had  begun  to  pass  through  the  United  States  treasury,  and  men  of 
small  calibre  but  immoderate  "  good  luck  "  acquired  princely  fortunes 
by  a  single  Government  contract,  without  dividing  with  their  con- 
gressional influence. 

I  remember  a  little  incident  that  occurred  during  the  first  year  of 
the  war  that  very  forcibly  illustrates  this  point.  A  member  of  Congress 
from  a  Western  State  obtained  for  one  of  his  constituents  a  contract 
with  the  quartermaster's  department  of  Washington  to  furnish 
1,000  horses  at  $130  each.  He  fulfilled  the  contract,  paying  an  average 
of  about  $90,  and  clearing  the  splendid  profit  and  fortune  of  $40,000. 
Meeting  his  congressman  one  day  in  the  streets  of  Washington,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  tell  him  of  his  good  luck  in  fulfilling  the  contract,  stating 
that  he  had  cleared  $40,000  thereby.  He  thanked  his  friend,  the  con- 
gressman, for  the  deep  interest  he  had  taken  in  his  welfare,  and  said  in 
conclusion:  "  Now  if  you  will  get  me  another  contract  just  like  it,  so  that 
I  may  clear  another  $40,000,  I  will  make  you  a  present  of  a  gold-headed 
cane.  The  congressman  thanked  him  for  his  kind  expressions  and  his 
overflowing  gratitude,  but  declined  the  offer  of  the  gold-headed  cane, 
and  politely  bade  him  "  good  day."  I  am  inclined  to  think  he  never 
obtained  another  such  fat  contract,  at  least  through  the  influence  of 
that  congressman,  as  the  way  I  heard  him  damn  that  particular  constit- 
uent for  proposing  to  bribe  hira  with  the  offer  of  a  gold-headed  cane  in 
exchange  for  $80,000  was  a  caution  to  all  evil  doers. 


42  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIXS. 

However,  the  Pony  Express  men  had  great  faith  in  the  success  of 
their  venture,  and  were  in  nowise  abashed  by  the  bold  proposition  of 
the  Ocean  Express  millionaires.  They  immediately  accepted  the 
wager  and  laid  down  their  $50,000  with  a  lofty  courage  as  to  the  final 
result. 

On  the  3d  of  April  the  ponies  started  on  the  mighty  task  they 
were  expected  to  perform.  One  from  the  ocean  to  the  river;  the  other 
from  the  river  to  the  sea !  One  with  its  golden  ensign  from  the  wave- 
washed  shores  of  the  Pacific ;  the  other  with  the  wheat-sheaf  from 
the  broad  Missouri  Valley  !  And  thus  onward  they  flew  across  the 
continent,  in  this  mightv  race  of  bone  and  sinew  against  the  fleeting 
hours,  the  throb  and  beat  and  pulse  of  time !  Station  after  station 
was  quickly  passed,  mile  upon  mile  melted  away  like  the  snow-wreaths 
in  the  valley  when  scorched  by  the  summer  sun.  N^earer  and  nearer 
came  the  heralds  of  civilization  bearing  across  trackless  wastes  the 
greetings  of  time's  empires  upon  the  East  and  West.  With  a  wild 
cheer  they  pass  midway  between  the  river  and  the  sea,  and  the  breath 
from  their  ponies'  nostrils  mingle  like  the  smoke  of  incense !  All 
along  the  land  course  there  was  perfect  order  and  discipline  in  each 
detail  of  movement,  as  scores  of  miles  faded  away.  As  soon  as  the 
express  reached  a  station,  where  its  work  was  done,  another  horse, 
saddled  and  bridled,  awaited  the  leap  from  one  stirrup  to  another. 
The  mail  bag  was  swiftly  tossed  from  one  to  another,  and  the  race 
continued  like  the  wind.  Fresh  horses,  with  riders  booted  and  spurred, 
instantly  took  the  place  of  the  worn  and  jaded.  Still  the  i"ace  was 
not  without  its  mishaps.  Four  hours  were  lost  in  a  snow  caiion  by  a 
bewildered  boy  rider,  who  wandered  aimlessly  seeking  the  road.  Sud- 
denly coming  upon  its  trace,  with  all  the  energy  of  despair,  he  again 
started  upon  the  course,  striving  madly  to  make  up  the  lost  time. 
Another  horse  and  rider  went  down  while  crossing  the  Platte  River. 
The  horse  was  drowned,  but  the  rider,  seizing  the  mail-sack,  swam 
safely  ashore,  and  ran  on  foot  to  the  next  station,  where  his  relief, 
in  waiting,  again  took  up  the  race,  as  with  a  lost  thread. 

And  all  this  time,  with  anxious  hearts  aboard  to  learn  the  result 
of  the  great  contest,  the  glowing  mail-steamers  were  plowing  their 
way  through  the  waves  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific.  Two  oceans 
were  under  conquest  to  contribute  their  aid  to  the  will  of  man.  On 
the  land,  ix>ny  and  rider  maintained  their  ceaseless  speed  through 


PONY  EXPRESS  RACE  FROM  ST.  JOSEPH,  MO.,  TO  SACRAMENTO,  CAL, 

43 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS.  45 

storm  and  sunshine,  through  daylight  and  darkness,  through  mountain 
caiion,  across  swollen  streams  and  over  trackless  wastes  of  parched 
and  burnt  alkali  deserts;  onward  they  flew,  and  still  onward,  until 
the  broad  continent  was  nearly  spanned. 

The  first  part  of  the  race  had  been  well  nigh  lost.  Salt  Lake  had 
been  reached,  but  not  in  ten  days.  They  were  a  few  hours  over  due. 
The  goal,  however,  Avas  Sacramento,  and  $50,000  liung  in  the  balance 
on  the  next  five  days.  Would  this  brave  effort  to  annihilate  space 
win  the  goal  ?  An  hour,  yea,  a  minute  late,  and  the  wager  would  be 
lost.  Would  the  time  lost  in  the  turbid  stream,  and  by  the  bewil- 
dered boy-rider  in  the  deep  snows  of  the  caiion  lose  the  race  ?  Who 
could  judge  ?  Swift  as  a  bird,  and  as  ceaseless  as  its  flight  from  wintry 
storms,  onward  went  the  Pony  Express  as  the  days  passed.  Twelve, 
fourteen,  fifteen  days  went  by,  and  at  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the 
westward-bound  was  due  at  Sacramento,  or*  the  goal  was  lost!  The 
morning  hours  sped  swiftly  away,  and  no  tidings  from  the  herald  of 
the  East.  High  noon  passed,  and  no  word  from  the  tireless  riders  of 
the  Pony  Express  !  Three  o'clock  strikes  upon  the  dial,  and  now  the 
minutes  are  counted  as  they  silently  wing  their  way  into  the  shades  of 
eternity  !  Half-past  three,  and  yet  no  sign  upon  the  hill  or  in  the  val- 
ley !  The  fleeting  moments  are  coated  with  anxiety  !  Dread  comes 
with  its  sullen  plume  to  mark  the  dead  march  of  Time,  and  uncer- 
tainty ! 

"Uncertainty! 
Fell  demon  of  our  fears !     The  human  soul 
That  can  support  despair,  supports  not  thee." 

But  "  Patience  sits  by  in  angel's  garb,"  and  offers  her  sovereign 
aid.  At  this  moment  a  speck  is  seen  upon  the  horizon.  Now  it  is  no 
bigger  than  a  man's  hand.  Now  it  is  a  cloud.  With  whip  and  spur 
the  bold  boy-rider  urges  on  his  flying  steed.  He  comes  with  a  wild 
shout  of  victory  beneath  his  floating  ensign  ;  his  wheat-sheaf  from  the 
distant  vallej'^  drops  at  the  people's  feet.  The  earth  trembles  with 
their  responsive  voice,  and  the  everlasting  hills  re-echo  their  shouts  of 
triumph.  The  Pony  Express  has  crossed  the  American  continent,  and 
won  by  twenty  minutes ! 

And  this  is  the  story  of  the  world-famed  Pony  Express,  as  I  have 
heard  it  told  a  hundred  times  around  distant  camp-fires,  w^hose  ashes 
long  since  mingled  with  the  sod.     The  same  speed  was  kept  up  all  the 


46 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


time,  as  if  $50,000  was  the  daily  prize.  It  was  the  same  for  months, 
and  then  the  wave  of  war,  with  its  blood}"  issues,  rolled  in  sullen  gloom 
across  the  plains,  and  the  riders  who,  with  whip  and  spur,  had  driven 
on  their  swift  chargers  in  the  interests  of  peace,  went  off  to  drive 
their  war  horses  into  battle,  armed  with  gun  and  sabre.  The  Pony 
Express  faded  from  the  trail  and  passed  into  history ;  the  trail  became 
grass-grown,  and  the  abandoned  stations  stood  like  ghosts  of  silent 
cities. 

The  Pony  Express  riders  were  sui  generis — brave  young  fellows, 
whose  love  of  adventure  principally  led  them  away  from  the  haunts 
of  civilization,  and  whose  wild,  untamed  nature  found  keen  zest  and 
enjoyment  in  the  danger  and  excitement  of  the  daring  frontier  life.  A 
volume  might  be  written  of  their  personal  exploits.  One  of  these  boys 
rode  for  eighty  miles  on  a  single  ^ 

stretch,  leaping  from  stirrup  to  stir- 
rup, until  he  entered  the  city  of 
Salt  Lake  through  the  rough  moun- 
tain fastnesses  and  the  rocky^  caiions  (T^ 
of  the  mighty  Wahsatch  range.    This 
rider  was  a  bright,  intelligent  lad, 
of  most  brave  and  sturdy  qualities, 
who  afterward  laid  down  his  young 
life  upon  a  Southern  battle-field. 

One  named    Murray  died 
not  long  ago  in  Salt  Lake  City. 
I  well  remember  him  and  his 
little  auburn-haired  wife,  who 
appeared  to  be  as  proud  of  him 
as  of  the  grandest.     Murray 
was  known  as   a  desperate 
man  and  a  deadly  shot.     He 
grew  from  a  thin  stripling  to 
be  a  large,  powerful  man, 
weighing  more  than  two 
hundred  pounds.     I  can  see 
him  now,  walking  the  streets 
of  Salt  Lake  City  in  a  sort  of 
a  bear  and  buckskin  suit,  a  brace  of  revolvers  strapped  to  his  waist,  a 


MURRAY 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUN.TAIXS.  47 

knife  in  bis  boot-leg,  and  a  breecb-loading  sbotgun  in  bis  bands ;  but 
tben  none  tbougbt  strange  of  sucb  a  garb.  It  was  tbe  custom  of  tbe  coun- 
try and  one  of  tbe  institutions  of  tbe  times  for  a  man  to  go  armed  caj)- 
d-pie  ;  in  fact,  it  was  essential  for  tbe  peace  and  security  of  a  man  that 
he  sbould  go  constantly  armed.  He  did  not  know  at  wbat  moment  be 
migbt  be  assailed,  and  to  be  "  beeled  "  at  tbe  proper  moment  be  must 
needs  carry  a  battery  around  witb  bim  at  all  times.  I  remember  very 
well  tbat  it  was  as  natural  for  me,  wben  I  dressed  in  tbe  morning,  to 
pusb  my  derringers  in  my  pistol-pockets,  as  it  was  to  place  my  sbirt 
upon  my  back  or  my  hat  upon  my  head. 

Tbe  charges  for  carrying  a  letter  by  tbe  Pony  Express  was  $5  per 
ounce  or  fractional  part  thereof.  This  afterward  became  reduced  by 
the  manufacture  of  a  peculiar  class  of  paper,  called  "pony  express 
paper,"  of  very  light  texture.  By  this  means  an  eight  or  ten-page 
letter  could  be  carried  for  $2.50. 

Tbe  income  of  the  Pony  Express  amounted  to  $500  per  day. 
Besides  tbe  United  States  mail,  it  frequently  carried  in  perfect  order 
valuable  express  packages  and  documents.  About  this  time  England 
waged  war  upon  China,  and  the  reports  from  tbe  English  squadron  in 
tbe  Chinese  waters  to  the  home  Government  were  carried  by  this 
route,  it  proving  tbe  quickest  as  well  as  safest.  One  of  these  official 
papers  weighed  so  heavily  that  the  charges  upon  it  were  $135. 

I  am  indebted  to  my  friend,  J.  S.  Robinson,  of  San  Francisco, 
Cal.,  who,  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century,  was  connected  by 
important  official  station  with  tbe  mail  and  express  lines  of  the  plains, 
for  several  letters  by  "  Pony  Express,"  and  tbe  envelope  transmitted 
by  ''Pony"  to  the  Denver  N'ews,  conveying  tbe  first  news  of  Lincoln's 
election  to  tbe  Presidency.  It  is  tbe  identical  envelope,  and  has  been 
in  bis  possession  during  all  these  long  intervening  years.  Tbe  stamp 
of  tbe  company  witb  which  my  friend  was  connected,  "  The  Central 
Overland,  California  &  Pike's  Peak  Express  Company,  N'ovember 
8th,  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,"  and  that  of  "Pony  Express,  St.  Joseph,"  are 
as  clearly  defined  as  they  were  on  tbe  day,  a  quarter  of  a  century 
since,  when  it  started  on  the  way  to  that  distant  point  in  tbe  mountains 
where  tbe  gold-seekers  bad  laid  the  foundation  of  what  Time  sbould 
determine  to  be  a  mighty  mountain  city.  Accompanying  is  tbe  letter 
of  Mr.  Eobinson,  notifying  tbe  agent  at  Denver  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  telegraphic  news  of  the  election  was  obtained.     What  a  story 


48 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


it  unfolds  of  the  struggles  of  the  pioneer  press  of  those  earl}"  times, 
and  what  a  mighty  change  Time  has  wrought  in  its  history,  wUen  we 
compare  the  present  prosperous  condition  of  tne  mighty  daily  journals 
of  the  West  with  the  heroic  struggles  of  those  days. 


OFFICE  or 

The  Cektral  Overlaid  Califobxia  &  Pike's  Peak 

Express  Compaxy. 

St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  Nov.  8th,  1860. 
A.  Bexham  Esq. 

Dr.  Sir  —  I  have  had  Mr.  H.  P.  McLoon  to  get  up  the  elec- 
tion news  for  Byers,  which  I  send  you.  Mr.  M.  was  the  only  man 
who  could  get  it  up,  as  he  had  bought  the  telegraphic  election  news 
for  one  week.  This  he  was  compelled  to  do,  or  the  citizens  of  St. 
Jo.  would  not  get  the  news,  as  the  papers  were  too  poor  to  give  the 
amount  required. 

Yours  Truly, 

J.  S.  Robinson. 


Here  are  ten  lines  rrom  the  agent  at  Julesburg,  two  days  later, 
telling  "  Dear  Alex,"  at  Denver,  that,  although  a  "  Pony  "  had  passed 
"  on  Thursday,"  it  had  brought  no  dispatch  for  Denver.  How  disap- 
pointing! No  news  for  Denver  away  off  in  the  mountains.  How 
neglectful  their  friends  at  home !  Nevertheless,  the  comforting  assur- 
ance is  vouchsafed,  that,  had  such  a  dispatch  arrived,  he  "  would  have 
sent  it  in  to  Denver,  two  days  ahead  of  that  time.  He  would  not 
have  forgotten  his  friends ! " 


JCLEISBEBG,   Xov.   10th,   '60. 

Dear  Alex. 

A  Pony  passed  here  Thursday  for  California  from  Fort  Kar- 
ney,  brought  no  dispatches  for  Denver —  If  the  Agent  at  Kearney 
had  sent  us  dispatches  would  have  sent  it  into  Denver  two  days 
ahead  of  this. 

G.  M.  Thompson. 


Now  comes  a  word  of  command  from  the  president  of  the  com- 
pany. It  is  still  later,  however,  August  17,  1861;  the  "dog-<;lays" 
are  upon  them,  and  in  these  sultry  ides  economy  must  be  practiced, 


FAC-SIMILE  OF  THE  FIRST  LETTER  CARRIED  OVER  THE  PI.AINS  BY  THE  PONY 
EXPRESS,  BEARING  THE  NEWS  OF  THE  ELECTION  OF  LINCOLN, 

49 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUifTAIXS.  51 

or  the  express  company  be  given  over  to  ruin.  "Castor  oil"  must 
give  way  to  "  dope,"  not  for  men  or  horses  to  cure  their  ailments,  but 
"^for  coaches."  So  reads  the  command,  and  the  authority  must  be 
obeyed.  But  there  is  an  amelioration  after  all,  for  the  "dope"  is  of 
no  common  order  or  origin  ;  it  is  "  Patent  Dope."  No  grumbling  will 
be  permitted  on  the  part  of  those  who  are  to  henceforth  use  it ;  if 
there  be,  immediate  permission  will  be  granted  them  to  change  their 
occupation.  In  other  words,  of  more  martial  strain,  if  they  fail  to 
obey  orders  "  they  will  be  promptly  discharged." 


OVERLAXD    MAIL, 

EASTERN  DIVISION, 

Cent"i.  Overl'd,  Cal.  &  P.  P.  Ex.  Co. 

St.  Joseph,  Augt.  17th  1861. 
A.  Benham,  Road  Agt. 

I  have  discontinued  the  use  of  Castor  oil  for  Coaches  on  this 
Line. 

"We  shall  send  you  hereafter  Patent  Dope,  -which  -will  be  sent 
out  in  such  qua,ntities  as  may  be  necessary  from  time  to  time. 

I  understand  that  there  is  great  objection,  on  the  part  of  some 
of  our  employees,  to  the  use  of  the  dope  referred  to.  You  will  see 
that  it  is  used,  and  report  to  me  any  delinquency  on  the  part  of 
Messengers,  in  that  respect  if  any,  and  I  will  allow  them  to  change 
their  occupation . 

You  will  aid  me  in  carrying  out  every  order  I  may  make.  I 
shall  permit  no  disobedience  of  orders.  I  make  them  on  my  best 
judgement,  and  those  whom  I  employ  are  paid  to  observe  them,  and 
not  liking  my  course  they  will  be  promptly  discharged. 

Yr.  obt.  St., 

B.  M.  Hughes, 

President. 


Now  this  sounds  like  the  General.  I  was  personally  acquainted 
with  him,  and  afterward,  when  he  grew  tired  of  the  burdens  of  office, 
he  gently  laid  them  down,  "  discharged "  himself,  and  began  the 
practice  of  law  in  the  rising  city  of  Denver.  "  Dope  "  and  all  its  cares 
gave  way  to  an  honest  practice  of  the  law  wherein  he  acquired  both 
fame  and  fortune,  and  I  am  |)roud  to  relate  that  when  I  met  this  bluff 
and  hearty  gentleman  in  the  full  tide  of  his  prosperous  practice  in 
Denver,  in  1867,  he  offered  me  a  partnership  in  his  business,  Avhich, 


52  ECHOES  FROM  THE  KOCKY  MOUXTAIXS. 

being  young  and  giddv',  I  was  so  foolish  as  to  decline.  Time  brings  its 
regrets.  I  wanted  to  travel  then — see  all  of  the  wild  western  world 
lying  between  Denver  and  the  Occident.  I  §aw  it ;  went  from  the 
Missouri  to  the  Pacific,  and  from  the  British  line  on  the  north  to 
the  Mexican  border  on  the  south  —  traveled  40,000  miles,  fio:htins: 
Indians,  Avild  beasts,  and  still  wilder  white  men  driven  from  the  pale 
of  even  border  society,  so  wicked  were  they,  and  years  afterward  came 
again  to  Denver.  Not  the  old  Denver,  but  the  young  monarch  of  the 
mountains,  and  found  that  General  Hughes  had  gathered  both  fortune 
and  fame,  while  I  had  gathered  —  well,  experience  ! 

But  m}'^  friend  Robinson  whom  I  came  to  know  intimately  on  the 
plains,  and  honor  for  his  many  manly,  generous  qualities,  has  contrib- 
uted still  more  for  the  benefit  of  my  readers.  He  likewise  has  written 
the  story  of  the  "Pony  Express,"  and  here  I  give  it  to  all  who  read 
this  history  of  early  life  on  the  plains  and  in  the  mountains  and  valleys 
of  the  far  West.  He  has  retired  from  these  busy  scenes  of  his  earl}- 
life  where  he  won  unbounded  reputation  for  his  courage,  generosity 
and  business  qualities,  and  now  lives  in  the  matured  3'ears  of  manhood 
in  the  city  of  the  Golden  Gate,  within  the  charm  of  a  bright  home 
circle,  beautified  and  glorified  by  the  presence  of  one  whom  he  has 
sworn  to  '•  love,  honor  and  obev,"  and  who  in  turn  has  made  her  voice 
the  sweetest  music  for  his  ears,  her  virtues  the  fairest  gems  of  all  his 
jewels,  and  her  prayers  the  tenderest  advocate  of  Heaven's  blessings 
on  his  head.  How  these  old  memories  must  crowd  their  way  into  his 
imier  life  by  the  quiet  home  circle !  This  is  his  stor}"  of  the  Pon\' 
Express. 

ROBLN'SON'S  STORY  OF  THE  "  PONY  EXPRESS.*' 

Of  late  years  many  accounts  of  the  origin  and  progress  of  the 
"Pony  Express"  have  been  given,  but  generalh^  the  credit  of  the 
undertaking  has  been  awarded  to  the  wrong  parties,  the  details  in  all 
instances  exaggerated,  and  the  importance  of  the  scheme  underesti- 
mated. It  is  firmly  beheved  by  many  that  the  success  of  the  Pony 
Express  established  the  feasibility  of  the  central  route  across  the 
continent,  and  hastened  the  building  of  the  Union  and  Central  Pacific 
railroads.  Certain  it  is  that  the  railroad  trains  traverse  almost  the 
identical  ground  traveled  by  those  fearless  and  hardy  riders  twenty-five 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  53 

years  ago.  At  that  date  there  had  been  no  agitation  of  the  subject 
of  a  trans-continental  railroad,  except  over  the  southern  trails,  and  as 
proof  of  this,  the  Overland  Mail  Company  selected  the  southern  route 
and  ran  their  stages  over  it.  The  central  route  was,  in  those  days, 
considered  a  desert  —  unfit  for  settlement,  inhabited  by  savages,  and 
subjected,  in  the  winter,  to  furious  storms  and  heavy  falls  of  snow. 
When  the  Pony  Express  was  projected  little  was  known  of  the  geog- 
raphy or  topography  of  the  country  west  of  the  Missouri  Kiver.  Salt 
Lake  Valley  had  been  settled  for  about  ten  years,  but  the  colony  was 
believed  to  be  a  wild  and  foolish  experiment.  The  Mormons  had 
rebelled  against  the  authority  of  the  Government,  and  President 
Buchanan  had  sent  Gen.  Albert  Sidney  Johnston's  army  there  to 
quiet  them.  Later,  in  1858,  "Pike's  Peak"  had  begun  to  excite  the 
nation  with  reports  of  gold  discoveries,  and  Washoe  had  drawn  from 
California  her  prospectors  and  miners.  Kansas  and  Nebraska,  the 
youngest  States  of  the  Union,  Avere  in  their  swaddling-clothes,  and  it 
was  doubtful  if  there  was  "  Godfrey's  Cordial  "  enough  in  the  political 
pharmacy  to  rear  them  as  States,  many  believing  that  they  must 
revert  back  to  the  condition  of  Territories  and  be  supported  by  the 
general  Government.  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and  Leavenworth,  Kansas, 
were  the  outposts  of  civilization,  and  visitors  from  the  older  States 
expected  to  shoot  buffalo  from  the  hotel  windows  when  they  came, 
and  got  laughed  at  for  verdancy.  The  Western  railway  terminus  was 
St.  Joseph — the  Hannibal  &  St.  Joseph  Railroad  being  considered  a 
doubtful  venture.  The  Missouri  River  was  plowed  by  boats  carrying 
passengers  and  freights.  Council  Bluffs  was  the  head  of  navigation, 
because  there  were  few  settlements  above  to  be  supplied.  Business  life 
was  active  along  the  river,  the  towns  on  its  banks  being  the  "  outfit- 
ting "  points  for  the  regions  beyond.  At  Kansas  Cit}'^,  at  Leavenworth, 
at  Atchison,  at  Weston,  at  St.  Joseph,  at  Council  Bluffs,  thriving  cities 
grew  up  from  the  fitting  out  of  thousands  of  freight  trains  which 
hauled  by  oxen  the  goods  and  supplies  for  the  remote  settlements  in 
Missouri,  Kansas,  Nebraska  and  Iowa.  Council  Bluffs  was  the  out- 
fitting point  of  the  Mormons,  who  every  year  started  their  trains  of 
proselytes  and  goods  from  there  to  "  Zion."  In  those  days  the  Mor- 
mons were  p\)or,  and  could  not  afford  oxen,  even,  to  draw  their  wagons. 
The  writer  of  this  has  seen  many  trains  hauled  by  men,  women,  boys 
and  girls.     This  mode  was  tedious,  but  cheap  and  effective ;  and  the 


54  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

three  and  four  months'  trip  of  toil  and  hardship  gave  a  more 
beautiful  appearance  to  '•  Zion "  when  the  footsore  and  weary  saint 
emerged  from  Emigrant  Caiion  and  looked  down  upon  the  fertile  valley 
below,  with  the  city  of  Salt  Lake  almost  hid  by  trees,  the  Jordan  and 
the  lake  in  sight.  Many  of  the  emigrants  died  on  the  road,  and 
a  good  many  stage  drivers  thinned  their  ranks  by  marrying  the  girls  — 
"  off-wheelers,"  "  near  leaders,"  etc.,  as  they  called  them — out  of  the 
"teams  "of  the  hand-cart  trains.  There  were  no  railroads  and  few 
settlements  west  of  the  Missouri  River,  and  the  country  was  compara- 
tively unknown.  In  1857-58  the  road  to  Salt  Lake  was  enhvened  by 
the  ox-trains  of  Russell,  Majors  <fe  Waddell,  who  had  the  contract 
from  the  Government  to  supply  Johnston's  army  in  Utah.  Before  this, 
in  1849  and  1850,  there  had  been  a  large  emigration  to  California,  but 
all  were  intent  upon  their  destination,  establishing  no  settlements  on 
the  way.  The  mail  was  carrietl  in  a  primitive  way,  on  an  occasional 
and  a  long  schedule  time.  It  may  safely  be  said  that  the  Pony 
Express  began  the  first  work  of  settlement,  fixing  the  permanency  of 
localities. 

The  "  Pike's  Peak  "  gold  excitement  began  in  1858,  and  there  were 
so  many  people  going,  and  no  public  transportation  accommodations, 
that  Mr.  John  S.  Jones  (a  Government  freighter)  and  Mr.  WUliam  H. 
Russell  (of  RusseU,  Majors  <fe  WaddeU)  established  a  stage  and  express 
line  between  Leavenworth  and  Denver  in  the  spring  of  1859.  It  was 
run  with  indifferent  success  during  the  summer,  and  failed  to  make  the 
money  predicted  for  the  enterprise.  In  the  winter  Mr.  Russell  brought 
the  resources  of  his  firm  to  the  rescue  of  the  failing  concern,  changed 
the  route  from  the  "Smoky  Hill"  (now  practically  used  by  the  Kan- 
sas Pacific  Railroad)  to  the  "  Platte"  route,  and  the  fertile  brains  of 
"William  H.  RusseU  and  B.  F.  Ficklin  conceived  the  idea  of  a  Pony 
Express,  to  be  run  under  the  patronage  of  the  Central  Overland  Cal- 
ifornia &  Pike's  Peak  Express  Co.,  the  name  now  assumed  for  the 
company  succeeding  Jones  &  Russell.  To  bring  about  success  for  the 
Ponv,  thev  negotiated  for  and  bouo:ht  the  Hockadav  Mail  Line.  Fick- 
lin  went  to  Salt  Lake  to  arrange  matters  with  Chorpening,  from  Salt 
Lake  west,  and  W.  W.  Finney  went  by  sea  from  Xew  York  to 
San  Francisco,  to  make  necessary  arrangements  on  the  Pacific  Coast 
end.  During  the  winter  of  1859-60  stations  were  established  at  con- 
venient distances  and  the  ponies  distributed  along  the  route,  which  was, 


;";%^ 


il&.v. 


KIT   CARSON. 


65 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  57 

briefly  stated,  due  west  from  St.  Joseph  to  Fort  Kearney,  up  the 
Platte  to  Julesburg,  where  it  crossed,  thence  by  Fort  Laramie  and 
Fort  Bridger  to  Salt  Lake  City  via  Camp  Floyd,  Ruby  Valley,  the 
Humboldt,  Carson  City,  Placerville  and  Folsom  to  Sacramento,  and  to 
San  Francisco  by  boat. 

The  intention  of  the  Pony  Express  was  to  carry  letters  only,  and 
not  more  than  twelve  or  fifteen  pounds  of  those.  It  was  decided  that 
the  safest  and  easiest  mode  of  carrying  the  mail  was  to  make  four 
pockets,  one  in  each  corner  of  the  mochilla  (pronounced  mocheer),  a  cov- 
ering made  of  heavy  leather,  for  the  saddles,  and  used  generally 
by  the  expert  Mexican  and  Spanish  riders.  The  mochilla  was  trans- 
ferred from  pony  to  pony,  and  went  through  from  St.  Joseph  to  San 
Francisco,  the  pockets  containing  the  mail  being  locked,  and  opened 
only  at  military  posts  en  route,  and  at  Salt  Lake  City. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  there  was  no  telegraph  west  of  St. 
Joseph,  and  the  arrangements  for  concert  of  action  had  to  be  personally 
made,  by  slow  stages,  over  a  wild  and  uninhabited  stretch  of  country, 
2,000  miles  across.  Finally,  after  months  of  winter  work,  establishing 
stations,  placing  riders  and  ponies,  it  was  announced  that  the  pony 
would  start  from  each  end  (St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and  San  Francisco, 
California)  the  same  hour,  April  3,  1860,  4  p.  m.  It  was  a  gala  day 
in  San  Francisco,  but  the  writer  of  this  only  knows  what  transpired  at 
St.  Joseph.  Arrangements  had  been  made  by  Mr.  Russell  with  the 
railroads  between  New  York  and  St.  Joseph,  and  a  fast  train  was  run, 
carrying  the  letters  which  were  to  arrive  at  and  leave  St.  Joseph 
promptly  at  4  o'clock  on  the  3d  of  April.  The  Hannibal  &  St.  Joseph 
Railroad  ran  a  special  engine  with  the  messenger,  and  the  ferry  boat 
was  held  in  readiness  for  a  specially  fast  crossing  of  the  Missouri  River. 
The  starting  of  the  first  pony  was  from  the  ofiice  of  the  United  States 
Express  Company,  and  St.  Joseph  never  held  such  an  enthusiastic  and 
excited  crowd  of  cheering  friends.  Mr.  Henry  Kip,  the  general  super- 
intendent of  the  United  States  Express  Company  (deceased  in  1883), 
came  from  Buffalo  to  be  present.  Mr.  Russell  placed  the  mochillas 
upon  the  saddle,  people  plucked  hairs  from  the  pony's  tail,  the  rider 
mounted,  the  ferry  boat  whistled,  and  the  express  was  on  its  way  to 
California.  It  had  been  arranged  for  the  pony  to  start  from  San 
Francisco  simultaneously,  and,  as  it  had  been  given  out  that  the  trip 
would  be  made  in  ten  days,  there  was  much  anxiety  until  the  13th,  the 


58  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

day  the  express  \ras  due  from  the  West.  Weekly  trips  were  to  be  made, 
and  another  pony  was  dispatched  on  the  lOth.^  On  the  13th  of  April, 
promptly  at  4  o'clock,  the  ferry  boat  landed  the  Pony  at  St.  Joseph, 
exactly  ten  days  from  San  Francisco.     It  was  a  success! 

A  success  ?  The  Pony  made  the  time  promised  for  it,  and  carried 
letters  and  news,  but  the  projectors  were  never  compensated  in  money 
for  their  outlay.  As  an  undertaking  it  was  a  success,  but  financially 
it  was  a  failure.  Only  a  small  percentage  of  the  investment  was  ever 
returned,  although  at  this  day  of  cheap  transportation  and  service  the 
charge  ^vill  be  considered  excessive.  For  letters  $5  per  half  ounce 
weight,  in  addition  to  the  regular  Government  postage,  was  charged. 
But  there  was  not  enough  business  at  that  time  between  the  Eastern 
cities  and  California  to  justify  the  sending  of  many  letters.  And  the  cost 
of  establishing  and  maintaining  the  Pony  Express  was  enormous.  Ee- 
lays  of  horses  were  kept  at  each  station,  and  feed  had  to  be  hauled,  in 
some  cases,  hundreds  of  miles,  all  at  a  heavy  expense,  and  riders  (thin, 
wiry,  hardy  fellows)  employed  at  every  third  station.  In  addition  to 
the  wages  paid  the  riders,  their  board  had  to  be  provided,  and,  as  the 
country  produced  nothing  then,  provisions  were  hauled  by  wagons 
from  the  Missouri  River,  Utah  and  California. 

The  principal  newspapers  in  New  York  and  San  Francisco  patron- 
ized the  Pony  Express  extensively,  having  their  issues  printed  on  tissue 
paper  for  the  service.  The  California  press  depended  for  Eastern 
news  entirely  upon  the  Pony  Express  after  it  was  established  until  the 
completion  of  the  telegraph  in  1862.  Western  news  was  telegraphed 
East  from  St.  Joseph  upon  the  arrival  of  the  Pony.  Read  what  an 
enthusiastic  writer  in  the  St.  Joseph  Free  Democrat  said  in  1860  : 

Takedown  your  map  and  trace  the  footprints  of  our  quadrupedantic  animal : 
From  St.  Joseph,  on  the  Missouri,  to  San  Francisco,  on  the  Golden  Horn — from  the 
last  locomotive  to  the  first  steamship — 2,000  miles — more  than  half  the  distance 
across  our  boundless  continent;  through  Kansas,  through  Nebraska,  by  Fort 
Kearney,  along  the  Platte,  by  Fort  Laramie,  past  the  buttes,  over  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, through  the  narrow  passes  and  along  the  steep  defiles,  Utah,  Fort  Bridger, 
Salt  Lake  City,  he  witches  Brigham  with  his  swift  ponyship — through  the  valleys, 
along  the  grassy  slopes,  into  the  snow,  into  sand,  faster  than  Thor's  Thialfi,  away 
they  go,  rider  and  horse — did  you  see  them? 

They  are  in  California,  leaping  over  its  golden  sands,  treading  its  busy  streets. 
The  courser  has  unrolled  to  us  the  great  American  panorama,  allowed  us  to  glance 
at  the  future  home  of  100,000,000  people,  and  has  put  a  girdle  round  the  earth  in 
forty  minutes.  Verily,  the  riding  is  like  the  riding  of  Jehu,  the  son  of  Ximshi,  for 
he  rideth  furiously.  Take  out  your  watch.  We  are  eight  days  from  New  York ; 
eighteen  days  from  London.     The  race  i*  to  the  swift. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  59 

0 

Eastern  papers  sent  representatives  to  St.  Joseph  and  to  Denver 
to  collect  news,  and  the  Pony  was  of  valuable  service  to  them.  The 
writer  remembers  Henry  Yillard,  correspondent  of  the  New  York 
Tribune,  stationed  at  St.  Joseph  ;  Albert  D.  Richardson,  of  the  Tribune, 
at  Denver,  and  Thomas  W.  Knox,  of  Boston  papers,  at  Denver. 
Mr.  Yillard  is  now  the  leading  spirit  in  the  Oregon  Railroad  and 
steamship  companies;  Richardson  was  killed  in  New  York;  Knox 
lives  and  is  a  successful  writer.  There  were  many  other  correspond- 
ents who  availed  themselves  of  the  Pony  Express. 

The  letters  were  securely  wrapped  in  oil  silk,  for  protection  against 
the  weather,  and  placed  in  the  pockets  of  the  mochillas.  Even  this 
precaution  did  not  always  protect  the  mail,  for  often  streams  were 
swollen  and  the  pony  must  not  wait,  so  the  riders  swam  their  horses 
across.  Occasionally  hostile  Indians  chased  the  pony,  but  only  one 
instance  is  remembered  when  he  was  caught.  The  rider  was  scalped, 
and  the  horse  with  fright  escaped  with  the  mochillas.  Months  after- 
ward the  letters  were  recovered  and  forwarded  to  their  destination. 
The  express  carrying  news  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  election  went  through 
from  St.  Joseph  to  Denver,  665  miles,  in  two  days  and  twenty-nine 
hours,  the  last  ten  miles  being  accomplished  in  thirty-one  minutes. 

At  first  the  stations  were  twenty-five  miles  apart,  but  afterward 
more  were  established  at  shorter  intervals.  Horses  were  changed 
at  each  station.  The  riders  went  usually  seventy-five  miles,  but  an 
instance  is  remembered  where  one  rode  nearly  300  miles,  those  who 
should  have  relieved  him  being,  for  some  reason  or  other,  disabled 
or  indisposed.  At  the  end  of  his  ride,  which  was  made  on  schedule 
time,  he  had  to  be  lifted  from  the  saddle,  and  could  not  walk  for 
many  days  afterward. 

In  the  summer  of  1860  the  construction  of  the  overland  telegraph 
was  begun  from  St.  Joseph  on  the  east  and  from  Sacramento  on 
the  west.  As  it  progressed,  their  outposts  were  made  the  starting 
points  of  the  Pony  Express,  and  in  1862,  the  telegraph  being  com- 
pleted, the  Pony,  no  longer  useful,  was  abandoned. 

William  H.  Russell  and  B.  F.  Ficklin,  original  projectors  of  the 
Pony  Express,  are  dead.  Jones  and  "Waddell,  also,  are  dead.  Alex- 
ander Majors  survives,  and  lives  in  Salt  Lake  City. 


60  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

The  successful  erection  of  the  transcontinental  lines  of  telegraph, 
from  the  "river  to  the  ocean/'  forms  another  important  era  in 
American  frontier  history;  one  of  those  connecting  links  in  the 
great  chain  of  events,  of  such  remarkable  character  as  to  form  one 
of  the  pillars  upon  which  rests  the  mighty  empire,  carved  from  the 
wilderness  of  mountain  and  plain,  and  rich  in  the  boundless  resources 
which  time  has  unfolded  and  laid  upon  its  shores,  as  the  trophies 
gained  by  man's  honorable  and  earnest  endeavor  in  the  mastery  of 
mind  over  matter.  The  history  of  the  telegraph  is  a  part  of  the 
history  of  the  world's  progress,  and  the  story  of  the  construction 
of  the  transcontinental  line  will  be  told  in  the  succeeding  chapter. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  ELECTRIC  TELEGRAPH  -  EARLY  EXPERIMENTS  -  CHARLES  MORRISON,  OF  REN- 
FREW, SCOTLAND  -  THE  FIRST  EXPERIMENT  CONTEMPLATED  A  CIRCUIT  OF 
BUT  FORTY  YARDS -A  CENTURY  PASSES,  AND  TELEGRAPHIC  ENGINEERING 
SENDS  A  CIRCUIT  FORTY  HUNDRED  MILES  ACROSS  THE  CONTINENT  -  THE 
MOUNTAINOUS  REPUBLIC  OF  SWITZERLAND  THE  SIRE  OF  EUROPEAN  TELEG- 
RAPHY -  THE  GREAT  REPUBLIC  OF  AMERICA  — ITS  PIONEERS  LAY  THE 
TRANS-CONTINENTAL  WIRES -SAN  FRANCISCO  PRINTS  DAILY  NEWS  OF  LON- 
DON, PARIS,  ST.  PETERSBURG,  VIENNA,  CALCUTTA  AND  CHINA  — THE  MIS- 
SOURI &  WESTERN  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY  —  THE  FIRST  OFFICE  IN  OMAHA  — 
THE  PACIFIC  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY  CHARTERED  BY  CONGRESS  —  THE  OVER- 
LAND TELEGRAPH  COMPANY  ORGANIZED  IN  CALIFORNIA  -  SKETCH  OF  THE 
COUNTRY  THROUGH  WHICH  IT  PASSED  —  EXCITING  INCIDENTS  AND  ADVENT- 
URES CONNECTED  WITH  ITS  CONSTRUCTION  —  MODE  OF  TESTING  THE  WIRES 
BY  RANCHMEN  -  DISCOVERING  THE  BREAKS  -  THE  DREAM  OF  INSPIRED 
SHAKESPEARE  PLANTING  THE  FORCES  OF  INSTANTANEOUS  TRANSIT  AND 
MARSHALING  TIME'S  MOMENTS  REALIZED  BY  THE  WORLD-GIRDLING  TELE- 
GRAPH -THE  GRANTS  MADE  BY  CONGRESS. 

The  first  intelligible  idea  of  the  practical  application  of  the  electric 
telegraph  to  the  transmission  of  messages  by  sound  was  suggested  more 
than  one  hundred  and  thirty  years  ago  by  Charles  Morrison,  of  Renfrew, 
Scotland,  a  native  of  Greenock,  who  was  bred  a  surgeon  and  experi- 
mented solargelyinscientificpursuitsthat  he  was  regarded  in  his  native 
place  as  a  wizard,  and, in  consequence  thereof,  incurred  the  fear  and  ill- 
will  of  the  people,  and  was  driven  thence  as  a  conjurer  versed  in  the. 
black  art.  He  transmitted  to  Sir  Hans  Sloane,  president  of  the  Royal 
Society,  a  full  account  of  his  experiments,  in  addition  to  publishing 
them  anonymously  in  1753  in  the  Scot's  Magazine,  under  the  title  of 
"  An  Expeditious  Method  of  Conveying  Intelligence." 

The  letter  set  forth  a  scheme  by  which  a  number  of  wires,  equal 
to  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  should  be  extended  horizontally,  parallel 
to  one  another  and  about  one  inch  apart,  between  t\vo  places.  At 
every  twenty  yards  they  were  to  be  carried  on  glass  supports,  and  at 
each  end  they  were  to  project  six  inches  beyond  the  last  supports  and 
have  sufficient  strength  and  elasticity  to  recover  their  situation,  after 
having  been  brought  into  contact  with  an  electric  gun-barrel  placed  at 
right  angles  to  their  length,  about  an  inch  below  them.     Close  b}'^  the 


62  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUyXAIKS. 

last  supporting  glass  a  ball  was  to  be  suspended  from  each  wire,  and 
at  about  a  sixth  or  an  eighth  of  an  inch  belo\x  the  balls  the  letters  of 
the  alphabet  were  to  be  placed  on  bits  of  paper,  or  any  substance  light 
enouorh  to  rise  to  the  electrified  ball,  and  so  continued  that  each  might 
resume  its  proper  place  when  droppet^  "With  an  apparatus  thus  con- 
structed, the  conversation  with  the  distant  end  of  the  wires  was  carried 
on  by  depressing  successively  the  ends  of  the  wires  corresponding  to 
the  letters  of  the  words  until  they  made  contact  with  the  electric  gun- 
barrel,  when  immediately  the  same  characters  would  rise  to  the  elec- 
trified balls  at  the  far  station.  Another  method  consisted  in  the  sub- 
stitution of  bells  in  place  of  the  letters ;  these  were  sounded  by  the 
electric  spark  breaking  against  them.  According  to  another  plan,  the 
wires  could  be  kept  constantly  charged,  and  the  signal  sent  b\^  dis- 
charging them.  Mr.  Morrison's  experiments  did  not  extend  over  cir- 
cuits longer  than  forty  yards,  but  he  had  every  confidence  that  the 
range  of  action  could  be  greatly  lengthened,  if  due  care  were  given  to 
the  insulation  of  the  wires. 

This  experiment,  it  will  be  observed,  contemplated  a  circuit  of  but 
forty  yards.  A  century  had  scarcely  passed  ere  the  giant  energies  of 
man  in  transatlantic  America  communicated  the  splendid  telegraphic 
engineering  feat  of  sending  a  circuit  4,000  miles  across  the  continent, 
and  for  many  hundreds  of  miles  through  a  barren,  trackless  desert 
waste. 

The  establishment  of  this  vast  line  of  telegraph  across  the  conti- 
nent, by  means  of  which  the  civilizing  forces  upon  the  shores  of  the 
Atlantic  and  Pacific  were  brought  instantly  into  communion  one  with 
another,  forms  one  of  the  most  striking  instances  in  the  mighty  prog- 
ress of  the  far  West,  and  which  added  immensely  to  the  business 
prosperity,  comfort  and  convenience  of  society  of  that  remote  section 
of  our  country. 

To  the  Mountain  Republic  of  the  world  is  due  the  example  of 
an  excellent  and  cheap  internal  telegraph  arrangement  and  the 
system  of  central  administration  where  all  international  matters  per- 
taining thereto  are  conducted.  But  to  the  western  pioneers  of  the 
great  republic  of  the  world  is  due  that  remarkable  exhibition  of 
powers  and  ingenuity  which,  overcoming  all  obstacles, — sometimes 
almost  superhuman, — laid  across  the  dead  solitudes  of  the  plains 
and  through  the  dark  canons  of  the  mountains  the  line  of  telegraph 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  63 

which  permits  the  daily  newspapers  of  San  Francisco  to  publish  the 
daily  news  from  l^ew  York,  the  acts  of  the  English  Parliament,  the 
transposition  of  troops  upon  the  German,  French  or  Russian  frontiers, 
as  well  as  the  prices  of  all  continental  exchanges  and  quotations  from 
Calcutta  and  China  of  the  previous  day. 

Such  is  the  marvelous  power  and  ingenuity  of  one  of  the 
foremost  works  of  our  modern  progressive  age,  and  its  early  history 
is  replete  with  interesting  detail. 

The  Missouri  &  Western  Telegraph  Company,  of  Avhich  Charles 
M.  Stebbins  was  president  and  principal  owner,  and  Robert  C.  Clowry 
superintendent,  extended  its  lines  from  Syracuse,  Missouri,  on  the  Mis- 
souri Pacific  Railway  (terminus)  via  "Warsaw,  Missouri,  Fayetteville 
and  Van  Buren,  Arkansas,  to  Fort  Smith,  Arkansas — and  also  from 
Atchison,  Kansas,  on  the  west  side  of  the  Missouri  River,  via  Browns- 
ville, Omaha,  Fremont,  Columbus,  and  Fort  Kearney,  to  Julesburg, 
Nebraska,  the  line  having  been  completed  to  Julesburg,  September 
15,  1861.  These  two  lines  were  constructed  by  Mr.  Stebbins,  in  the 
belief  that  Congress  would  adopt  one  or  the  other  as  the  initial  line  of 
a  vast  overland  telegraph  system  to  the  Pacific  coast,  and  that  the 
new  Pacific  Telegraph  Company  would  purchase  his  line,  which  after- 
ward came  to  passin  the  purchase  of  the  line  from  Brownsville  to 
Julesburg. 

The  first  telegraph  office  in  Omaha  was  established  by  R.  C. 
Clowry,  superintendent  of  the  Missouri  &  Western  Telegraph 
Company,  on  the  5th  day  of  September,  1860,  the  same  day  the  line 
was  completed  to  that  place.  At  that  time  there  was  no  railroad 
communication  with  Omaha,  and  the  people  greatly  rejoiced  at  the 
advent  of  the  wire,  and  celebrated  the  event  by  popular  demonstra- 
tions. 

The  Pacific  Telegraph  Company,  chartered  by  Congress,  was 
granted  an  appropriation  of  $40,000  per  annum  for  ten  years, 
which,  however,  was  never  paid.  This  subsidy  was  to  be 
divided  in  the  ratio  of  sixty  per  cent,  for  the  line  east  of  Salt 
Lake  and  forty  per  cent,  for  that  west  of  Salt  Lake.  It  was  also 
granted  the  free  right  of  way  and  use  of  Government  timber,  etc., 
from  a  point  on  the  Missouri  River,  opposite  the  western  boundary  of 
the  State  of  Missouri,  to  San  Francisco.  Jeptha  11.  Wade,  of  Cleve- 
land, Ohio,  was  the  president  of  the  company,  and  Edward  Creighton, 


64  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOtJNTAIKS. 

of  Omaha,  the  superintendent.  This  line  was  constructed  from  the 
terminus  of  the  Missouri  &  Western  at  Julesburg,  to  Fort  Laramie, 
thence  through  South  Pass,  and  over  the  Mormon  trail  to  Salt  Lake 
City.  This  work,  under  the  supervision  of  Edward  Creighton,  was 
begun  at  Julesburg  in  the  spring  of  1861,  and  was  completed  to  Salt 
Lake  on  the  17th  day  of  October  of  the  same  year. 

While  this  great  work  was  rapidly  consummated  east  of  Great 
Salt  Lake,  it  was  just  as  vigorously  prosecuted  on  the  western  side. 
The  Overland  Telegraph  Company,  organized  by  the  California  State 
Telegraph  Company  especially  for  this  work,  constructed  the  line  from 
Sacramento  to  Salt  Lake  City,  via  the  stage  road,  and  completed  the 
labor  October  24,  1861,  just  seven  days  later  than  the  Pacific  Tele- 
graph Company.  This  work  was  under  the  supervision  of  James 
Gamble,  superintendent  of  the  California  State  Telegraph  Compan3\ 

The  act  of  Congress  incor}>orating  the  Pacific  Telegraph  Company 
was  passed  June  16,  1860,  and  proposed  "to  facilitate  communication 
between  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  States  by  electric  telegraph."  This 
act  was  secured  by  Hiram  Sibley,  of  Rochester,  Kew  York,  and  was 
accepted  by  him  September  22, 1860.  The  act  provided  that  dispatches 
by  the  Government  should  have  precedence  over  all  others ;  that  the 
tariff  upon  ten  words  between  Brownsville  and  San  Francisco  should 
not  exceed  $3,  and  that  the  whole  line  should  be  employed  by  July 
31, 1862.  The  public  believed  that  it  would  occupv"  two  years  for  the 
completion  of  this  arduous  undertaking,  and  yet  the  whole  work  was 
finished  in  four  months  and  eleven  days. 

The  country  may  well  be  able  to  judge  of  the  efficiency  and  won- 
derful energy  of  the  leaders  in  the  construction  of  this  offshoot  of 
civilization  when  it  considers  the  obstacles  that  interposed  to  prevent 
its  successful  accomplishment — the  vast  alkali  plains  extending  for 
many  hundreds  of  miles  over  a  barren  and  desolate  country,  where 
neither  tree  nor  shrub  nor  spear  of  grass  grew,  and  where  never  a 
rain-drop  fell  to  cool  the  fever  of  its  parched  and  burning  crust,  nor 
stream  of  wat^rran  to  quench  the  thirst  of  man  or  beast;  the  warring 
bands  of  Indians  ever  on  the  war-path,  eager  to  resist  the  encroach- 
ment of  the  white  man  in  what  they  deemed  to  be  their  own  especial 
country,  and  put  to  death  the  invader  by  slow  and  horrible  torture 
should  he  become  a  prisoner  in  their  ruthless  hands ;  the  topographical 
character  of  the  country,  with  mountains,  canons  and  deep  valle3's,  all 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAIIfS.  65 

to  be  traversed  with  the  burden  of  implements  and  subsistence,  and  the 
vast  plain  over  whose  trackless  solitudes  not  only  the  implements  and 
subsistence  of  the  working  parties  had  to  be  transported,  but  likewise 
each  giant  pole  upon  which  was  strung  the  electric  wire  which  should 
make  the  Atlantic  speak  and  the  Pacific  return  its  answer,  even  as  the 
voice  of  man.  And  yet,  swiftly  and  surely,  one  by  one,  these  obstacles 
were  overcome  and  the  great  progressive  work  assumed  its  rank  and 
proportions  in  the  history  of  the  world. 

On  the  17th  of  March,  1864,  the  Pacific  Telegraph  Company  was 
merged  with  the  Western  Union,  and  on  the  12th  of  June,  1866,  the 
Western  Union  purchased  a  controlling  interest  in  the  California  State 
Telegraph  Company  and  the  Overland  Telegraph  Company,  which 
gigantic  system  still  remains  intact. 

Many,  indeed,  are  the  incidents  of  exciting  adventure  connected 
with  the  prosecution  of  that  vast  work,  and  matters  of  great  interest 
to  the  public,  which  might  be  related. 

The  question  might  properly  be  asked :  How  was  it  possible  to  keep 
the  lines  in  working  order,  through  the  trackless  deserts  and  the  mighty 
canons,  when  violent  storms  or  savage  depredations  often  laid  them 
low?  This  work  was  performed  by  ranchmen,  not  operators,  who  had 
been  instructed  in  the  use  of  a  testing  apparatus,  which  proved  entirely 
successful. 

This  testing  apparatus  consisted  of  two  brass  plates,  with  accom- 
panying brass  button,  and  a  ground  wire  separated  from  the  apparatus, 
but  convenient  to  be  pressed  with  tongue  or  finger.  When  the  button 
was  turned  the  current  became  broken  and  the  tester  applied  a  damp- 
ened finger  to  one  line,  placing  the  other  on  the  ground  wire.  If  he 
felt  a  shock  or  sensation  in  his  fingers,  he  would  know  that  a  current  of 
electricity  existed,  and  that  th*at  portion  of  the  line  was  all  right.  If 
he  felt  no  shock  nor  sensation  in  his  fingers,  he  would  know  that  the 
line  was  down.  The  same  operation  was  to  be  repeated  on  the  other 
part  of  the  disconnected  line. 

After  testing  and  finding  no  current,  he  was  instructed  to  wait 
fifteen  minutes,  testing  occasionally  during  the  time,  then  if  no  current 
was  perceptible  he  should  proceed  to  get  his  horse  ready  to  start  over 
the  line  from  which  he  received  no  current.  Thirty  minutes  was 
allowed  to  get  his  horse  ready  for  the  ride,  at  the  expiration  of  which 
time  he  should  repeat  the  testing  operation,  and  if  no  current  was  at 

6 


66 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY     MOCXTAIXS. 


that  time  perceptible,  he  should  start  forth  on  the  line  as  rapidly  as 
possible,  always  observing  that  the  hnes  were  connected  before 
starting.  » 

When  the  wires  were  down  on  both  sides  of  the  testinc:  station, 
two  men,  properly  instructed,  were  to  start  at  the  same  time,  one  over 
each  line.  The  hours  for  testing  were  7  a.  m.,  11  a.  m.  and  3  p.  m. 
every  day.  If  convenient,  tests  at  two  or  three  other  times  during  the 
day  were  to  be  made  as  quickly  as  possible,  so  as  to  disturb  the  transit 
the  least. 

These  were  the  general  instructions  issued  to  the  ranchmen  who 
dwelt  alone  in  these  solitudes,  and,  being  faithfull}'  observed,  proved 
eminently  successful. 

Much  might  be  written  of  this  lone  life  of  the  ranchman  operator. 
One  of  them,  stationed  all  winter  on  the  Big  Sand}^  near  South  Pass, 
was  frightened  at  the  sound  of  his  own  voice  in  the  spring  when  calling 

his  horse,  which  had  wandered 
off  in  search  of  Sweet  grass. 
Another  beheld  from  the  door 
of  his  ranch  a  band  of  3,000 
wolves  cut  the  hamstrings  of 
his  horse,  "which  was  grazing 
near  b}',  and  devour  it  before 
he  could  render  any  assistance. 
Such  was  a  part  of  the  lone 
life  of  the  ranchman  upon  the 
frontier  of  the  far  "West. 

The  Midsummer  2s  ig  h  t '  s 
Dream  of  Shakespeare,  girdhng 
the  earth  in  forty  minutes ;  the 
winged  wonders  which  Ariosto 
and  Spenser  pictured  with  de- 
light, hastening  through  the  air 
on  wings  of  light,  have  all  been 
verified  by  the  genius  and  skill 
of  man.  It  is  a  singular  fact  to 
contemplate  in  the  history  of 
the  world's  progress  that  each 
mighty  achievement  of  science 


LOXE  RAN'CHMAN   FRIGHTENED  AT  THE 
SOUXD  OF  HIS  OWN  VOICE. 


67 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  69 

has  been  in  some  manner  foretold  by  the  great  minds  who  live  in 
advance  of  their  age.  All  of  the  wonderful  inventions  which  have 
changed  the  current  of  thought  and  revolutionized  the  forms  and 
foundations  of  society  with  the  progress  of  the  ages  have  'been  pre- 
figured by  the  pen  of  genius  centuries  before.  The  fables  of  the  far  past, 
which  delighted  the  infant  minds  of  long  slumbering  generations,  have 
become  the  realities  of  the  present.  Chimeras  have  turned  into  realities 
and  legends  into  law.  The  balloons  that  sail  the  air,  steamers  that  plow 
the  sea,  locomotives  that  rush  with  an  eye  of  flame  and  breath  of  steam 
across  plain  and  desert,  mountain  and  valley,  are  but  the  realization  of 
the  fabled  wonders  unfolded  by  the  storied  lore  of  Ariosto  and  the  fairy 
tales  of  Spenser.  The  dream  of  inspired  Shakespeare,  that  around 
the  circular  earth  he  would  plant  the  forces  of  instantaneous  transit,  and 
marshal  the  moments  of  time  at  his  will  and  command — the  dream  of 
the  wild  enthusiast  faintly  unfolding  an  obscure  idea  which  the  march 
of  Time  has  demonstrated  to  be  an  eternal  law  of  Truth,  has  been 
realized  in  the  minutest  detail  by  the  wonderful  world-girdling  tele- 
graph. Had  an  American  citizen  declared,  half  a  century  ago,  his 
earnest  belief  that  existing  elements  and  powers  of  the  universe  could 
be  so  controlled  and  applied  to  a  simple  mechanical  invention  that 
direct  and  instantaneous  communication  could  be  effected  with  remote 
points  in  Europe  as  well  as  his  own  land  ;  that  each  morning  he  would 
sit  in  his  own  counting-house  or  by  his  own  fireside  and  read  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  previous  day  in  the  Old  World  and  the  New,  the  rise 
and  fall  of  stocks  upon  the  Bourse,  the  mobilization  of  the  armies  of 
the  Czar  upon  the  frontier,  the  passage  of  the  Balkan  Mountains  by 
an  army  of  invasion,  the  death  of  the  Sultan,  the  overflow  of  the 
wheat  lands  of  Russia,  the  success  of  the  French  arms  in  China,  the 
marriage  of  Queen  Victoria's  youngest  daughter,  the  loss  of  Gladstone's 
voice  affecting  the  success  of  the  Liberal  campaign  in  Scotland  and  the 
lower  counties  of  England,  the  news  of  Honolulu,  and  the  state  of  the 
weather  in  the  land  of  the  midnight  sun,  such  a  declaration  would 
have  constituted  sufficient  grounds  for  a  writ  de  lunatico  inquirendo 
against  the  enthusiast.  4nd  yet  the  early-rising  newsboys  cry  out 
before  his  window,  ere  the  curtains  are  withdrawn,  all  this,  and  much 
in'^re.  The  world  has  been  girdled,  and  Cancer  and  Capricorn  have 
raded  like  a  mist.  Shaffner's  girdle  of  ante  helium  times  proposed 
starting  from  the  coast  of  Labrador  and  laying  an  unbroken  wire,  500 


70  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

miles  in  length,  among  the  walruses  and  whales  of  the  Xorth  Sea  to 
Greenland  ;  thence  it  should  stretch  across  Greenland  and  eastward 
to  the  Faroe  Islands,  whence  it  would  reach  the  continent  in  Norway, 
and,  sweeping  on  toward  the  circumference  of  the  globe,  reach  Stock- 
holm and  coast  along  Finland  to  St.  Petersburgh.  Leaving  the  capital 
of  the  Czar's  dominions,  it  would  trend  toward  the  Ural  Mountains ; 
leap  across  them  into  Asia;  pass  through  the  provinces  of  Omsk, 
Oudinska,  Komsk,  Kolivan,  and  the  vast  t«a  country  of  Chinese 
Tailary  ;  stretch  away  to  the  sea  of  Okhotsk,  and  across  the  Gulf  of 
Kamchatka ;  thence  along  the  Aleutian  Islands,  to  Cooke's  Inlet  in 
North  America ;  then,  moving  down  the  Pacific  coast  to  Oregon  and 
San  Francisco,  the  line  would  strike  to  the  East,  by  way  of  the  Mormon 
settlement,  and  again  touch  civilization  among  the  corn  and  wheat- 
fields  of  Western  Missouri.  Thus,  in  the  realization  of  Shakespeare's 
dream,  oceans,  islands  and  continents  were  to  be  crossed,  the  savage 
and  civilized  to  be  brought  in  direct  contact,  the  winds  outstripped 
and  time  itself  thrown  back  upon  the  dial.  Can  anyone  deny  the 
accomplishment  of  all  this  ?  Have  not  still  greater  wonders  come  to 
pass  ?  Has  not  the  mysterious  bed  of  the  ocean  itself  been  invaded 
by  the  flame  of  the  electric  spark  and  made  to  speak  beneath  its 
billows  ?  The  great  submarine  telegraph  obviated  the  long  continuous 
overland  journev  through  the  frozen  steppes  of  Russia,  and  formed  on 
the  English  coast  a  radiating  point  to  all  of  the  capitals  and  countries 
of  Europe,  and  every  mart  of  trade  and  business  center  and  each  con- 
necting point  in  the  entire  length  and  breadth  of  the  Old  World.  We 
have  already  seen  that  the  republic  of  Switzerland  has  evolved  the 
cheapest  internal  telegraph  arrangement,  and  the  most  excellent  system 
of  central  administration,  where  aU  international  matters  pertaining 
thereto  are  conducted.  A  most  important,  if  not  the  most  important, 
part  of  this  system,  in  connection  with  the  great  submarine  cables  of 
the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans,  is  the  vast  overland  telegraph  system 
of  the  United  States.  The  completion  of  this  great  system  was  the 
first  act  of  unification  between  the  extremes  of  our  territory.  It  was 
the  forerunner  and  prophecy  of  the  transcontinental  railroad.  The 
organization  of  this  great  enterprise  had  the  mightiest  hold  upon  the 
sympathies  and  good-will  of  the  republic.  The  citizens  residing  upon 
the  Pacific  coast  held  the  strongest  ties  connecting  them  with  the  older 
States.     Their  tall  spirits  had  blazed  the  way  and  opened  the  path  of 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  71 

civilization  to  the  remotest  points  upon  the  continent.  They  not  only 
established  the  forms  of  society,  but  organized  powerful  States,  and 
rapidly  created  a  commerce,  whose  far-reaching  influence  extended 
beyond  the  islands  of  the  sea  to  the  Asiatic  coast.  Their  peculiar 
position  imperatively  demanded  the  protection  and  care  of  the  General 
Government.  Europe  was  extending  her  telegraph  lines  into  Asia, 
Africa  and  India,  and  the  great  overland  American  line  from  Missouri 
to  the  Pacific  was  the  missing  link  in  the  mighty  chain  that  would 
touch  upon  either  shore  of  the  Atlantic,  by  lines  spanning  the  conti- 
nents, and  destined  in  a  few  years  to  witness  the  grand  spectacle  of 
crossing  the  ocean  and  uniting  indissolubly  the  shores  of  both  hemi- 
spheres. 

The  result  of  such  an  important  work  could  not  be  overestimated 
in  its  influence  upon  the  varied  interests  of  the  vast  population  that 
would  early  occupy  every  portion  of  the  territory  through  which  it 
would  pass,  as  well  as  that  embraced  within  the  entire  limits  of  the 
republic.  And  the  benefits  that  would  follow  the  completion  of  such 
a  work  were  not  confined  alone  to  the  business  interests  of  the  people 
and  the  moral  influences  that  would  be  co-extensive  with  the  world  of 
civilization  and  commerce.  The  interests  of  the  General  Government 
were  involved  to  a  remarkable  degree.  The  protection  of  the  great 
commonwealth  founded  on  the  distant  Pacific  coast,  rich  in  vast  mineral 
deposits  and  many  scores  richer  in  the  productions  of  its  prolific  soil, 
and  the  commercial  interests  already  foreshadowing  the  giant  propor- 
tions it  has  since  assumed,  demanded  the  care  and  consideration  of  the 
Government.  Beyond  the  reach  of  ordinary  means  of  intercourse  with 
the  Federal  capital,  the  transmitting  of  military  stores  and  means  of 
defense  was  a  work  of  great  time  and  labor,  while  its  vast  extent  of 
unprotected  seaboard  and  its  incalculable  riches  rendered  it  an  object 
of  cupidity  and  ambition  of  foreign  nations.  To  be  able  to  grant 
necessary  aid  in  time  of  need,  the  Government  should  possess  the 
speediest  means  of  communication  to  impart  the  knowledge  of  impend- 
ing danger.  J3y  the  establishment  of  the  overland  telegraphic  line, 
the  means  of  almost  instant  communication  would  be  at  its  command, 
and  the  military  strength  of  the  Government  could  be  immediately 
invoked  and  set  in  motion  toward  that  end  in  an  incomparably  small 
space  of  time,  and  that  accomplished  in  a  few  moments  which  otherwise 
consumed  many  days  and  weeks.     Convinced  of  both  its  practicability 


72  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

and  utility,  as  already  stated,  Congress  passed  an  act  granting  the  right 
of  way  through  the  public  lands  for  the  coc^truction,  by  individual 
enterprise  and  at  individual  expense,  of  a  line  of  telegraph  of  at  least 
two  independent  conductors,  from  the  Missouri  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
It  likewise  granted  2,000,000  acres  of  the  public  domain  in  aid  of  its 
construction.  It  was  completed  in  8  period  of  time  far  within  that 
provided  as  a  limit  by  the  act,  and  from  the  hour  of  its  achievement  to 
the  present  moment  it  has  proved  a  blessing  to  the  Government  and 
the  people,  and  a  mighty  auxiliary  to  the  progressive  spirit  of  the  age, 
which  has  founded  an  empire  of  wealth  and  prosperity  on  the  Western 
border  and  opened  the  pathway  of  civilization  to  the  most  distant 
regions  of  the  republic 


CHAPTER  IT. 

THE  OVERLAJS^D  MAIL,  AND  WELLS,  FARGO  &  CO.'S  EXPRESS  -  SKETCH  OF  COUN- 
TRY AND  MINING  CAMPS  WHERE  THE  MAIL  FACILITIES  WERE  SUPPLIED  BY 
WELLS,  FARGO  &  CO.'S  MAIL  EXPRESS  -  THE  FRONTIER  POSTOFFICE  -  THE 
POSTMASTER  WHO  WAS  A  MAIL  CARRIER -THE  NOTICE  HE  POSTED  IN  A 
TRADING  STORE -HIS  CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  THE  POSTMASTER-GENERAL 
-THE  DRIVERS  OF  THE  MAIL  COACHES  AND  THEIR  PAY -THE  WAY  BESET 
BY  INDIANS.  ROBBERS  AND  ROAD  AGENTS  -  ROBBERS  AS  DRIVERS— THE 
MURDER  AND  ROBBERY  OF  A  COACH  LOAD  OP  PASSENGERS  IN  PORT  NEUF 
CANON,  IDAHO  TERRITORY  -  BATTLE  BETWEEN  PASSENGERS  AND  ROBBERS 

—  THE  FOUNDING  OF  WELLS,  FARGO  &  CO.'S  EXPRESS -ITS  SYSTEM  OF  LET- 
TER CARRYING -A  GREAT  FINANCIAL  EARTHQUAKE  ON  THE  PACIFIC  COAST 

—  FALL  OF  NOTED  HOUSES -WELLS,  FARGO  &  CO.  AGAIN  ON  ITS  FEET -HIS- 
TORY OF  PACIFIC  EXPRESS  COMPANIES  -  LOUIS  McLANE  -  THE  VARIOUS 
ROUTES  TO  THE  PACIFIC. 

• 

Soon  after  the  close  of  the  Pony  Express  and  the  building  of  the 
OverlaricyTelegraph  the  lumbering  stage  coach  appeared  with  its  daily 
load  of  mail  and  express  matter  and  re-peopled  its  silent  haunts.  Ben 
Holliday  established  his  lines  of  fast  stages  between  the  Missouri  Eiver 
and  Salt  Lake  City,  obtained  the  contract  from  the  Government  for 
carrying  the  overland  mail  through  the  extent  of  his  line,  and  again 
started  Avith  renewed  vigor  the  life  race  over  the  plains. 

The  Indians,  ever  jealous  of  the  advent  of  the  white  man  in  their 
midst,  became  exceedingly  troublesome  in  their  raids  upon  this  line, 
and  man}'-,  indeed,  were  the  desperate  encounters  between  the  savages 
of  the  plains  and  the  drivers  and  passengers  of  the  overland  coaches. 

Beyond  Salt  Lake  City  was  the  great  mail  and  express  line  of 
Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  occupying  all  the  territory  lying  west  of  the 
Wahsatch  range  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  penetrating  every  mining 
camp  where  gold  was  to  be  conveyed  in  appreciable  quantities. 

Wherever,  in  this  vast  territory,  a  form  of  civilization  had  taken 
root,  and  men  in  their  search  for  gold  had  lingered  long  enough  in  one 
spot  to  found  a  mining  camp  so  far  remote  from  the  main  line  that 
the  United  States  Government  could  not  supply  them  with  mail  facil- 
ities, this  magnificent  line  penetrated  their  mountain  fastnesses  and 
far  up  its  rocky  heights  rolled  their  mountain  coaches,  delivering  and 

73 


74 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


transporting  the  miners'  mail  in  the  company's  own  envelopes,  aflBxing 
thereto  a  United  States  postage  stamp  to  comply  with  the  postal  laws. 
And  so  popular  did  this  express  company-  become  in  the  estimation  of 
the  adventurous  mountaineers,  that  likewise,  in  places  reached  by  the 
mail  service  of  the  Government,  he  was  far  more  willing  to  trust  .and 
patronize  the  express  company  than  the  United  States  mail,  although 
he  was  compelled  to  pay  the  company  twenty-five  cents  for  each  and 
every  letter  thus  conveyed.  And  the  company  reai^ed  a  rich  harvest  in 
thus  transmitting  East  and  West,  at  such  exorbitant  rates,  the  honest 
miner's  mail  matter. 

In  those  early  times  the  postmaster  himself  occasionallj'  became 
the  mail  carrier,  al- 

though  in  violation  ^^  .  ?/V'/h,  'i^'-''' 

of  the  well  known 
law.  I  remember  the 
case  of  a  postmaster 
who  kept  a  trading 
store,  and  pushed  for- 
ward the  mail  once  a 
month  from  his  post 
to  another  through 
the  wilderness.  He 
cut  a  transverse  hole 
in  the  top  of  an  emp- 
ty flour  barrel  and 
placed  on  it  the  fol- 
foUowing  sign : 

''This  is  the  Post-  FRONTIER  POSTOFFICE  OX  THE  PLAINS 

offi/ie.  Shove  a  quarter  through  the  hole  with  your  letter.  We  have  no 
use  for  stamps^  as  I  carry  tlie  mail !  " 

At  the  end  of  each  month  he  would  unhead  the  barrel,  count  first 
the  letters  and  then  the  quarters.  If  they  tallied,  all  right.  The  mail 
went  forward  I  If,  however,  there  were  more  letters  than  quarters, 
he  would  in  that  event  retain  a  sufficient  number  of  the  letters  to 
correspond  with  the  deficiency  in  the  finances,  and  send  forward  the 
balance.  It  was,  indeed,  a  simple  mode  of  procedure  and  saved  him 
much  annoyance,  whatever  might  be  the  result  to  the  community. 
One  day  the  accounting  officer  of  the  postoffice  department  at  Wash- 
ington transmitted  him  a  communication,  inclosed  in  a  voluminous 


MOUNTAIN    MAIL    CARRIER. 
75 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  77 

official  envelope,  requesting  a  statement  of  his  account  with  the  Gov- 
ernment. He  returned  the  document  forthwith  with  the  following 
unique  and  business-like  endorsement :  "  You  owe  me  nothing ;  or  if 
you  do,  I  hereby  present  it  to  the  Government.  If  I  owe  you  any- 
thing collect  it  out  of  the  foregoing." 

It  is  not  recorded  how  much  the  Government  collected. 

Ben  Ilolliday  continued  to  run  his  line  of  stages  until  some  time 
after  the  close  of  the  war  —  I  think  until  the  year  1866,  when,  over- 
tures having  been  made  by  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  for  its  purchase, 
including  stations,  stock  and  the  outfit  generally,  negotiations  resulted 
in  the  transfer  of  the  same,  and  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  became  thereby 
the  sole  proprietors  of  the  unbroken  overland  route  from  Omaha  to 
Sacramento.  They  likewise  owned  and  operated  a  branch  line  whose 
initial  point  was  Atchison,  Kas.,  and  terminus  Denver,  running  over 
the  dark  and  bloody  land  called  the  "  Smoky  Hill  Koute,"  well  nigh 
each  mile  of  which  had  been  marked  by  Indian  violence. 

Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  were  great  public  benefactors.  They  led  the 
van  of  improvement  wherever  the  demands  of  their  businiss  called 
them,  and  in  the  distant  cities  of  the  wilderness  erected  magnificent 
structures  for  banking  and  office  purposes,  sparing  neither  labor  nor 
expense.  Thus  confidence  in  the  future  was  established,  Private 
capital  became  largely  invested,  and  the  great  prosperity,  which  has 
characterized  these  cities  since  the  advent  of  the  railroads,  began  with 
the  energy  and  liberality  of  the  great  Overland  Express  Company, 
thus  early  displayed. 

Their  business  interests  were  immense.  Their  returns  from  the 
rapid  transportation  of  freight  and  passengers  and  the  United  States 
mails  amounted  each  year  to  millions  of  dollars,  receiving  at  one  time 
alone  for  the  latter  twelve  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  As  a 
corporation  they  were  both  friendly  and  liberally  disposed  toward  the 
people  in  whose  midst  they  operated,  frequently  expending  large  sums 
of  money  in  the  construction  and  improvement  of  highways  and  sim- 
ilar beneficial  works. 

Toward  their  employes,  they  were  equally  liberal,  paying  large 
salaries  for  all  classes  of  labor,  and  encouraging,  by  swift  promotion, 
efficiency,  integrity  and  application  to  business. 

The  pay  of  a  driver  of  their  overland  coaches  ranged  all  the  way 
from  $150  to  $250  per  month,  according  to  ability  and  length  of  service 


78  ECHOES  FEOM  THE  KOCKY  MOUXTAINS. 

in  connection  with  the  danger  and  peril  of  the  service.  Some  portions 
of  the  road  were  beset  with  far  more  danger  and  hardship  than 
others,  and  commanded  higher  wages  accordingly.  This  pay  was  in 
addition  to  subsistence  which  was  furnished  by  the  company  at  the 
"  home  stations  "  on  the  line  of  the  road. 

These  stations  were  usually  about  fifty  miles  apart,  and  were  kept 
quite  neat  and  clean,  and  tolerably  well  provided  with  food  for  the 
passengers,  at  the  rate  of  a  dollar  and  a  quarter  a  meal,  served  three 
times  a  day. 

At  times  these  positions  as  drivers  were  in  demand,  although 
clothed  with  jjeril.  I  have  ridden  on  the  seat  beside  a  driver,  who 
carried  inside  the  lining  of  his  buckskin  or  corduroy  coat  a  college 
diploma.  I  have  seen  lawyers  and  doctors  and  newspaper  men 
and  those  of  great  clerical  ability,  who  afterward  rose  to  eminence 
in  their  business,  handle  the  ribbons  dexterously  and  gayly  crack  the 
long  whip,  as  the  crowded  coach — the  ship  of  the  alkah  desert — 
rolled  out  from  ranch  or  station  to  transport  securely  its  precious 
freiffht  over  the  mountains  and  the  white  beds  of  the  solitudes. 

Sometimes  the  company  was  imposed  upon  b}'  brutal  adventurers, 
men  whose  hearts  were  black  with  crime,  and  hands  red  with  the  blood 
of  their  murdered  victims.  Robbers,  who  sought  the  positions  alone 
to  l>etray  their  trusts,  and  drive  their  coaches,  loaded  with  lives  and 
treasure,  within  the  preconcerted  ambush  of  marauders,  known  as 
"  road  agents,"  who  did  not  hesitate  to  murder  in  the  most  cowardly 
way  the  unsuspecting  traveler,  who,  perhaps,  after  years  of  toil,  priva- 
tion and  danger,  at  length  had  accumulated  a  competence,  and  was 
returning  again  to  his  childhood  home,  and,  perhaps,  was  dreaming  of 
the  meeting  with  loved  ones,  who  had  awaited  his  coming  through  all 
these  years  of  absence,  at  the  moment  the  assassin's  bullet  launched 
him  from  his  day  dreams  into  the  land  of  forms  and  shadows. 

I  have  stood  beside  a  vast  boulder,  half  hidden  in  the  willows, 
which  in  some  age  had  loosened  its  hold  and  rolled  far  down  from  its 
rocky  heights  into  one  of  the  wildest  of  glens  and  most  picturesque 
spots  in  southern  Idaho,  where  the  stage  road  winds  through  Port 
Xeuf  caiion,  close  by  a  singing  stream,  whose  banks  are  lined  with 
drooping  willows  and  the  fiery  ash,  where  all  but  two  of  a  whole  coach 
load  of  returning  miners  were  slaughtered  by  a  band  of  mountain  rob- 
bers, distinguished  by  the  title  of  road  agents.     In  this  wild    spot 


OVERLAND  MAIL-EXPRESS  ARRIVING  IN  TOWN. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAINS.  81 

manv  a  miner  from  Montana,  on  his  way  to  Salt  Lake  City  or  the 
States,  was  suddenly  confronted  by  these  land  pirates  and  made  to 
throw  up  his  hands  and  drop  his  dust,  the  result  of  years  of  toil  and 
privation.  One  day  in  July,  1805,  the  treasure  coach  for  the  south 
left  Virginia  City  with  seven  passengers,  N.  S.  Parker,  A.  J.  McCaus- 
land,  David  Dinan,  W,  L.  Mers,  L.  F.  Carpenter,  Charles  Parks  and 
James  Brown,  and  a  large  amount  of  treasure  in  dust  and  gold  bars. 
These  men  were  all  hardy  miners  and  mountaineers  who,  with  a  view 
of  protecting  their  hard  earned  treasure  from  the  attacks  of  robbers, 
were  armed  witli  double-barrfeled  shot-guns  loaded  with  buckshot. 
Tliey  feared  an  attack  upon  the  coach,  and  determined  to  defend  it 
with  their  lives.  They  watched  in  turn  at  the  coach  windows,  with 
guns  ready  for  instant  use,  with  the  hope  of  obtaining  the  first  shot  in 
case  of  an  attack.  The  driver's  name  was  Frank  Williams,  and  another 
man  sat  with  him  on  the  driver's  seat,  who  was  afterward  found  to 
have  been  one  of  the  robbers.  On  reaching  this  wild  spot  in  Port  Neuf 
caiion,  the  man  on  the  box  with  the  driver  cried  out,  "  Boys,  here  they 
are !"  The  outside  watch  fired  a  hasty  shot,  and  the  passengers  inside 
the  coach  fired  simultaneously  at  what  appeared  the  gun-barrels  of  the 
robbers  peering  through  the  willows.  This  volley  was  immediately 
answered  by  another  from  the  bushes,  McCausland,  Mers,  Dinan  and 
Parker  fell  dead  from  this  fire.  Carpenter  was  wounded  in  three  places, 
and  saved  his  life  by  feigning  death  on  the  approach  of  one  of  the  rob- 
bers for  the  purpose  of  shooting  him  the  second  time.  Parks  was  mor- 
tally wounded,  and  was  not  further  molested  by  the  assassins.  Brown 
alone  was  uninjured,  and  escaped  in  the  bushes.  The  driver,  Williams, 
had  purposely  driven  the  coach  into  the  deadly  ambush,  and  received 
his  share  of  the  plunder.  He  immediately  left  the  employ  of  the  com- 
pany and  departed  from  Salt  Lake  City.  Avengers,  however,  were 
upon  his  trail,  and  his  part  of  the  robbery  was  fastened  upon  him.  He 
wa^  traced  to  Denver  and  a  watch  placed  upon  his  movements  each 
moment  of  his  life,  and,  step  by  step,  the  evidence  of  his  crime  was 
woven  about  him.  A  vigilance  committee  performed  the  last  cere- 
mony. They  rounded  off  his  life  on  the  famous  oaken  bough  by  the 
waters  of  Cherry  Creek,  early  one  morning  before  the  sun  had  gilded 
the  summit  of  Pike's  Peak.  Eight  robbers  committed  the  slaughter  in 
the  caiion,  and  obtained  $70,000  in  gold,  and,  save  the  driver,  Frank 
Williams,  none  were  ever  punished  for  the  crime. 


82  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

The  founding  of  "Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  Express  is  intimately  con- 
nected with  the  early  development  and  marvelous  growth  of  the 
Pacific  coast.  ■?  * 

With  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California,  the  establishment  of 
numerous  raining  camps  and  the  wonderful  influx  of  emigration,  a  most 
promising  field  was  presented  for  energ\'  and  industry.  Early  in  the 
spnng  of  1850,  Adams  «fe  Co.,  with  headquarters  at  San  Francisco, 
established  agencies  throughout  the  mining  camps  of  California,  and 
freight  and  treasure  thus  found  a  ready  means  of  conveyance. 

Animated  by  the  prospect  of  reajting  a  share  of  the  rich  harvest 
that  lay  before  them,  a  new  company  sprang  into  existence,  whose 
founders  were  Henry  Wells,  W.  G.  Fargo,  E.  B.  Morgan,  J.  C.  Fargo, 
Johnston  Livingston,  L.  W.  Winchester,  D.  M.  Barney,  B.  P.  Cheny 
and  others,  prominent  in  the  business  and  financial  world.  This  com- 
pany was  organized  in  March,  1852,  under  the  general  laws  of  incor- 
poration of  the  State  of  Xew  York,  with  a  capital  of  $300,000  in  the 
name  of  Wells,  Fargo  <fe  Co.  This  name  has  never  been  changed, 
and  beneath  its  familiar  ensigns  have  been  won  all  the  achieve- 
ments that  have  given  it  renown  from  one  line  of  continent  to  the 
other.  It  still  remains  the  same,  although  the  original  organization  has 
in  the  meanwhile  undergone  various  changes.  It  was  at  first  intended 
to  operate  solely  on  the  Pacific  slope,  its  connection  with  Xew  York 
being  by  sea.  Colonel  Pardee  and  R.  W.  Washburn  were  its  first 
managers  or  general  agents  at  San  Francisco.  Immediately  upon 
its  organization  it  began  a  spirited  contest  for  popular  favor  with  exist- 
ing express  companies.  It  established,  in  connection  with  the  ordinary 
express  business  as  alread}"  stated,  a  system  of  letter-carrying  and  dis- 
tribution, independent  of  the  United  States  mails.  This  novel  feature, 
as  related,  at  once  caught  the  popular  favor,  and  was  held  in  high 
esteem,  as  it  contributed  greatly  to  the  comfort  and  convenience  of 
residents  of  remote  mining  camps  not  on  the  line  of  the  mail  routes. 
Its  importance  was  recognized  by  Congress  in  the  passi  ge  of  Section 
3993,  Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States.  A  general  banking  sys- 
tem was  likewise  established  for  the  purchase  and  sale  of  exchange, 
gold  dust  and  bullion,  which  has  continued  uninterruptedly  since  its 
early  formation. 

It  is  not  to  be  presumed,  however,  that  all  was  pleasant  sailing 
on  this  sea  of  business  adventure.    Rough  winds  sometimes  overtake 


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83 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIJfS.  85 

the  proudest  craft  and  drive  them  on  the  breakers.  Three  years 
after  their  organization,  California  was  visited  with  a  financial  earth- 
quake that  shook  the  new  El  Dorado  to  its  center.  Consternation 
seized  upon  the  people  everywhere  on  the  Pacific  coast.  All 
the  great  firms  went  down.  Adams  &  Co.,  Page,  Bacon  &  Co., 
Burgoyne  &  Co.,  and  other  houses  whose  financial  standing  had 
never  for  a  moment  been  questioned.  It  was  a  simoon,  whose  hot 
breath  withered  all  that  it  touched.  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  did  not 
escape  entirely.  It  shared  in  the  general  panic  and,  without  a  proper 
consideration  of  the  grounds  of  alarm,  closed  the  doors  of  its  San 
Francisco  oflBce.  A  temj)orary  receiver  was  immediately  appointed  in 
the  person  of  Henry  M.  ISTaglae,  and  his  inquiries  into  the  condition  of 
the  affairs  of  the  company  at  once  convinced  him  that  its  financial 
foundation  was  sound  and  its  assets  amply  sufficient  to  meet  all 
demands.  In  three  days  its  suspension  terminated,  business  was  re- 
sumed and,  in  all  the  long  years  of  changeful  adventure  that  have  since 
passed,  its  doors  have  never  been  closed.  Amid  all  the  panics  and 
monetary  convulsions  that  have  shaken  the  great  business  centers  of 
the  country  and  wrecked  many  a  powerful  corporation,  it  has  stood 
like  a  great  rock,  around  which  the  waves  roll  and  break  into  ripples. 
The  failure  of  Adams  &  Co.  in  California  did  not,  however, 
leave  the  field  entirely  to  "Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  From  the  remains 
of  the  broken  institution  sufficient  material  was  saved  to  construct 
another  company,  the  Pacific  Express,  which  for  a  brief  period 
disputed  the  field.  At  other  and  various  times  the  territory  operated 
by  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  was  either  wholly,  or  in  part,  occupied  by 
different  firms,  who  became  either  absorbed  or  driven  from  the  field  by 
the  patronage  extended  to  their  more  powerful  antagonists.  Among 
them  may  be  enumerated  the  Expresses  of  Adams  &  Co.,  Freeman 
&  Co.,  Gregory  &  Co.,  Wines  &  Co.,  Hunter  &  Co.,  Ehodes  &  Co., 
Todd  &  Co.,  Whiting  &  Co.,  McLane  &  Co.,  Miller  &  Co.,  Tracy 
&  Co.,  Berkraan  &  Co.,  Greathouse  &  Co.,  Washoe  Express  and 
T.  &  F.  Co.,  Langton  &  Co.,  Evarts  &  Co.,  Scammon  &  Co.,  Lamping 
&  Co.,  Barber  &  Co.,  Wells  &  Co.,  Barnard  &  Co.,  Snell  &  Co., 
and  others  still  are  now  recalled.  A  more  formidable  rival,  how- 
ever, than  any  of  the  foregoing,  was  the  Pacific  Union  Express, 
organized  in  May,  1868,  but  retired  in  N"ovember,  1869.  On  the 
occurrence   of  the  financial   troubles   of  1855,  the  treasurer  of  the 


86 


ECHOES   FKOM  THE   EOCKY    MOUNTAISS. 


company,  Thomas  James,  was  sent  from  'New  York  to  San 
Francisco  to  assume  charge  of  their  interests.  In  October  follow- 
ing he  appointed  as  general  agent  of  the  company,  Lewis  McLane, 
a  native  of  Maryland,  who  had  recently  settled  in  San  Francisco.  Mr. 
McLane  had  lat:;ly  retired  from  the  naval  service  of  the  Government, 
and  brought  into  the  work  a  more  vigorous  spirit  of  enterprise.  Under 
his  management  an  immediate  improvement  began  in  the  company's 
affairs,  its  business  largely  extended,  and  its  letter-carriage  system, 
which  had  lately  declined  on  account  of  interference  by  the  postoffice 
department,  was  placed  in  full  accord  with  legal  requirements  and  on 
a  basis  of  |)ermanent  prosperity.  The  stamped  envelope  of  the  Govern- 
ment was  substituted  for  their  own  for  this  class  of  business,  with  an 
oflBcial  imprint  of  the  company  thereon,  and  were  sold  at  a  moderate 
advance  upon  the  original  cost.  This  plan  proved  both  effectual  and 
remunerative,  as  dm-ing  the 
first  month  of  its  adoption 
the  sales  amounted  to  -several 
thousand  dollars,  and  sub- 
sequently reaching  $15,000 
a  month.  To  expedite  this 
class  of  business  every  means 
was  adopted,  and  the  use  of 
"pony  riders"  and  runners 
on  snowshoes  frequently  re- 
sorted to,  when  other  means 
proved  impracticable. 

Immediately  upon  the  set- 
tlement of  the  Pacific  coast 
followed  the  question  of  rapid 
and  constant  mail  facilities. 
Many  were  the  schemes  de- 
vised, but  the  first  practical 
effort  in  this  direction  was 
made  in  1S56,  when  a  com- 
pany was  formed,  which  con- 
tracted with  the  Government 
to  carry  the  United  States 
mails  overland  from  St.  Louis  letter  carrier  on  snow  skoes. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  87 

to  San  Francisco.  This  company  was  named  "  The  Overland  Mail 
Company,"  and  began  its  career  of  usefulness  with  John  Butterfield 
as  president  and  William  G.  Fargo,  "William  B.  Dinsmore,  the  Barneys, 
B.  F.  Cheny  and  others  as  associates.  It  was  in  fact  in  the  hands 
of  the  originators  and  owners  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  and  was 
intended  as  a  means  of  transportation  for  all  express  matter,  as 
well  as  the  mails.  The  line  was  located  geographically  on  what 
has  been  variously  designated  as  the  "Southern  Eoute"  and  the 
"Butterfield  Eoute."  Its  initial  point,  as  stated,  having  been  St. 
Louis,  running  thence  through  Southwestern  Missouri,  Indiiin  Terri- 
tory, ISTew  Mexico,  Arizona  and  Southern  California  to  San  Francisco. 

This  route,  although  followed  for  a  number  of  years,  was  not  in 
all  respects  satisfactory,  and  was  finally  abandoned,  in  1861,  for  the 
Central  Eoute.  Although  not  directly  within  the  control  of  Wells, 
Fargo  &  Co.,  it  is  a  well  known  fact  that  this  change  was 
inspired  by  that  great  organization,  and  forms  a  connecting  fink  in 
the  chain  of  events  that  survived  the  overland  service. 

Parallel  with  the  route  of  the  Overland  Mail  Company  on  the  south, 
was  a  line  of  mail  service  far  to  the  north,  run  once  a  month  on  long 
schedule  time,  known  as  the  Central  Eoute.  Its  eastern  division,  that 
from  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  to  Salt  Lake  City,  was  owned  and  operated 
by  John  Hockaday,  and  its  western  division,  that  from  Salt  Lake  City 
to  Sacramento,  by  George  Chorpenning.  During  the  mining  excite- 
ment attendant  upon  the  gold  discoveries  of  Pike's  Peak  in  the  years 
1859-60,  then  an  unorganized  Territory,  now  the  State  of  Colorado, 
the  eastern  half  of  this  combination  was  absorbed  by  the  company 
known  as  the  "  Central  Overland  California  and  Pike's  Peak  Express 
Company,"  a  new  organization  founded  by  the  renowned  border 
freighting  firm  of  Eussell,  Majors,  Waddell  &  Co.,  and  John  S. 
Jones,  and  a  stage  and  express  line  estabhshed  between  Leaven- 
worth City,  Kansas,  and  Denver,  over  the  "Smoky  Hill  Eoute," 
changing  in  1860  to  the  "  Platte."'  As  previously  stated,  it  was  this 
company  that  inaugurated  the  famous  "  Pony  Express."  The  Pony 
Express  was  started  simultaneously  from  each  end  of  the  line,  St. 
Joseph  on  the  east  and  Sacramento  on  the  west,  on  the  3d  of  April, 
1860,  and  made  regular  weekly  trips  between  those  points  cover- 
ing the  continent  in  ten  days,  carrying  letters  alone.  The  success  of 
the  enterprise  demonstrated  the  feasibility  of  a  "central  route,"  and 


88  V     ECHOES   FUOlf  THE   KOCKY  JiOL'XTAIXS. 

accordingly  the  '"Overland  Mail"  on  the  southern  route  was  trans- 
ferred to  it  in  the  summer  of  1861,  the  company  purchasing  Chorpen- 
ning's  interest  and  the  Pony  Express  from"*Salt  Lake  west.  The 
Central  Overland  California  &  Pike's  Peak  Express  Co.  and  the 
Pony  Express  from  Salt  Lake  City  east,  were  still  later,  in  1861,  ab- 
sorbed by  the  "  Overland  Stage  Line,"  owned  and  operated  by  Ben 
HoUiday.  The  western  half  still  remained  in  possession  of  the  original 
projectors  of  the  Overland  Mail  Company,  and  was  managed  by  Wil- 
liam Buckley,  general  superintendent,  and  Messrs.  Fred  Cook,  Jacob 
Gooding  and  H.  S.  Rumfield,  agents  and  superintendents.  In  1866, 
through  the  efforts  of  Gen.  Bela  M.  Hughes,  Mr.  Holliday  obtained 
from  the  legislature  of  Colorado  a  charter  for  the  "Holliday  Over- 
land Mail  and  Express  Company,"  and  the  same  year  there  followed  a 
general  consolidation  of  all  the  various  interests  consisting  of  TTells, 
Fargo  <fe  Co.,  the  Overland  Mail  Company,  the  Pioneer  Stage  Com- 
pany, and  the  Holliday  Overland  Mail  and  Express  Company, 
oiganized  under  the  recently  acquired  Holliday  charter,  with  a  capital 
of  $10,000,000,  under  the  name  of  "Weils,  Fargo  and  Company,  the 
change  of  name  being  ratified  by  a  special  act  of  the  Colorado  legis- 
lature. Louis  McLane  was  chosen  president  of  the  consolidated 
organization,  with  headquarters  in  Ke w  York  City.  Charles  E.  McLane 
(deceased  August,  1881),  previously  superintendent  of  the  Pioneer 
Stage  Company,  owned  by  Wells,  Fargo  <fc  Co.  was  appointed  gen- 
eral agent  for  the  Pacific  coast,  with  headquarters  in  San  Fran- 
cisco ;  John  J.  Valentine,  superintendent  of  express,  and  James  J. 
Tracy,  of  New  York,  general  superintendent  of  the  line.  "Wells, 
Fargo  &  Co.  now  controlled  all  the  important  express  and  stage 
lines  lying  between  the  Missouri  River  and  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
with  branch  lines  running  through  the  Territories  of  Idaho  and  Mon- 
tana, and  transported  all  the  overland  mail  and  express  matter. 

In  1868  A.  H.  Barney  succeeded  Louis  McLane  as  president  of  the 
company,  and  his  administration  was  marked  by  sagacity,  energy  and 
success.  Some  time  after  Mr.  Bame}''s  assumption  of  control  John  J. 
Valentine  was  appointed  general  superintendent,  with  headquarters  at 
Xew  York,  which  was  subsequently  changed  to  San-Francisco. 

Upon  completion  of  the  Union  and  Central  Pacific  Kailroads, 
the  officers  of  the  company  decided  to  revert  to  the  original  inten- 
tions of  its  founders,  and  accordingh'  disposed  of  all  its  stage  interests. 


ECHOES    FKOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  89 

Since  then  its  operations  have  been  confined  solely  to  banking  and 
express. 

In  the  early  part  of  1869  a  new  Pacific  Express  was  organized  by 
a  company  of  capitalists  of  California,  consisting  of  J).  O.  Mills,  Lloyd 
Tevis,  Henry  D.  Bacon  and  others,  who  contracted  with  the  Central 
Pacific  Railroad  for  express  privileges  for  a  period  of  ten  years,  and 
immediately  thereupon  proceeded  to  occupy  this  main  artery  of  com- 
munication. However,  at  a  meeting  of  the  rival  interests  at  Omaha^ 
where  W.  G.  Fargo,  A.  H.  Barney,  Charles  Fargo  and  John  J.  Val- 
entine represented  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  and  D.  O.  Mills,  Lloyd 
Tevis  and  Henry  D.  Bacon,  the  Pacific  Express,  the  negotiations 
resulted  in  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  acquiring  the  Pacific  Express. 
The  following  year  A.  H.  Barney  was  succeeded  by  Lloyd  Tevis,  of 
San  Francisco,  as  president  of  the  company,  and  the  general  offices  of 
the  company  removed  to  San  Francisco,  where  it  has  since  remained. 
Since  that  period  but  little  change  has  occurred  in  its  management. 

Few  people  comparatively,  understand  the  immensity  of  this 
organization.  It  operates  over  thirty-five  thousand  miles  of  express 
lines,  rail,  stages  and  steamers,  transacting  business  in  Alaska,  Arizona, 
California,  Colorado,  Dakota,  Idaho,  Kansas,  Louisiana,  Missouri, 
Minnesota,  Montana,  Nebraska,  Nevada,  New  Mexico,  Oregon,  Texas, 
Utah  and  Washington  Territory,  in  the  United  States ;  and  at  Van- 
couver Island,  B.  C,  and  the  States  of  Aguascalientes,  Baja,  California, 
Chihuahua,  Colima,  Durango,  Guanajuato,  Hidalgo,  Mexico,  Queretaro, 
Sinaloa,  Sonora  and  Zacatecas,  in  the  republic  of  Mexico. 

The  company  likewise  possesses  agencies  in  St.  Louis,  Cincinnati, 
Chicago,  New  York,  Boston,  London,  Paris,  Berlin,  Vienna  and  other 
European  cities.  It  also  transacts  important  business  between  En- 
gland and  the  continent. 

Notwithstanding  all  this,  the  enterprise  is  essentially  a  Western 
feature,  and  its  growth  has  kept  pace  with  the  mighty  development 
of  that  vast  region.  From  forty  agencies,  in  1854,  it  has  grown  into 
thousands,  and  in  mileage,  business  and  earnings  it  stands  in  the  front 
rank  of  the  great  express  companies  of  the  United  States,  paying  regu- 
larly a  semi-annual  dividend  of  four  per  cent. 

While  inaugurated  as  a  money-making  institution,  it  has,  neverthe- 
less, by  its  uniform  respect  for  the  rights  of  individuals,  secured  and 
maintained  a  firm  hold  on  the  good-will  of  the  people,  which  has  proven 
exceptional  in  the  history  of  corporations. 


90  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

It  is  admitted  generally  that  no  other  express  company  in  the 
world  has  been  subjected  to  such  losses  as  has  been  incurred  by  the 
attacks  of  robbers  and  of  highwayman  and  lawless  desperadoes,  yet 
the  promptness  with  which  each  loss  by  these  depredations  has  been 
adjusted  has  impressed  the  public  confidence  in  its  integrity  and 
responsibility. 

The  company  has  further  augmented  its  good  reputation  by  the 
sympathy  it  has  exhibited  in  times  of  public  calamity,  and  its  identifi- 
cation with  many  of  the  great  relief  movements  of  past  years  forms 
a  luminous  page  in  its  history.  It  is  often  exclaimed  that  the  "  corpora- 
tions are  soulless."  Perhaps  in  the  main  this  is  true.  The  exception 
shows  all  the  brighter  for  the  truism.  The  powerful  hand  of  this 
corporation,  embraced  in  the  personal  supervision  of  its  officers,  in 
collecting  and  forwarding  money  and  supplies  free  of  charge  and  in 
directing  large  sums  to  the  stricken  and  suffering  communities,  was 
extended  over  the  great  fire  of  Chicago,  the  overflow  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  the  yellow  fever  at  Memphis  in  1873,  the  grasshopper  plague  of 
Kansas  and  Nebraska,  the  inundation  of  Marysville,  California,  the 
forest  fires  in  Wisconsin,  the  great  fire  at  Virginia  City,  Is^evada,  and 
the  terrible  yellow  fever  scourge  of  1878.  In  addition  to  all  of  this 
usefulness  and  generosity  is  the  fact  always  spread  before  us,  like  a 
living  page,  of  the  immensit}'  of  its  service  to  mankind  in  providing 
such  food  for  its  thousands  of  employes  and  the  many  other  thousands 
of  helpless  ones  dependent  upon  their  labor,  ramifying  its  good 
influence  wherever  it  goes,  penetrating  the  wilderness  with  its  banners 
of  industry  and  bearing  the  lights  of  civilization  in  the  darkest  corners 
of  the  land.  Surely  capital  and  labor  are  here  well  combined,  and 
blessings,  not  curses,  must  follow  such  a  corporation. 


CHAPTER  Y. 

THE  PACIFIC  RAILROADS— SURVEYS  AND  EXPLORATION'S  BY  THE  GOVERNMENT 

—  ACTS  OF  CONGRESS -THE  GRANTING  OF  SUBSIDIES  -  A  MINUTE  DESCRIP- 
TION OF  THE  BUILDING  OF  EACH  ROAD— THEIR  PLANS  AND  METHODS  — 
THE  INITIAL  POINT  ESTABLISHED  BY  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  — HIS  APPOINT- 
MENT OF  COMMISSIONERS  -  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  WORK  —  THE 
IMMENSITY  OF  THE  UNDERTAKING  — HARDSHIPS  AND  PRIVATION  ENDURED 

—  COMPLETION  OF  THE  TWO  GREAT  TRANS-CONTINENTAL  LINES -INCIDENTS 
CONNECTED  WITH  THEIR  CONSTRUCTION  -  DRIVING  OF  THE  TWO  GOLD 
SPIKES -THE  COST  OF  EACH  ROAD  -THE  "CREDIT  MOBILIER  "  —  ITS  MYS- 
TERIOUS METHODS -THE  VAST  SUMS  OF  MONEY  IT  CAPTURED  —  OAKES 
AMES— THE  FABULOUS  EARNINGS  OP  THE  ROADS  — THEIR  GIIEAT  BENETTTS 
TO  THE  COUNTRY. 

As  the  Pony  Express  made  way  for  the  swifter  stage  coach,  like- 
wise in  tlie  order  of  rapid  progress  the  line  of  fast  stages  was  swept 
from  mountain  and  plain  by  the  iron  courser,  whose  shrill  breath  of 
steam  awoke  the  echoes  of  hills  and  valleys  that  had  slept  in  silence 
through  all  the  ages. 

The  necessity  of  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific  was  recognized  ever  since 
the  discovery  of  gold  upon  that  coast  and  the  tide  of  emigration  had 
given  birth  to  a  colossal  civ^ilization  upon  its  distant  shores.  It  was 
another  Mexico  and  Peru,  far  richer,  however,  in  its  mineral  wealth 
and  far  more  inviting  as  to  climate  and  geographical  position.  The 
magnificent  advantages  of  the  new  State  as  to  harbor  and  location, 
commanding  the  trade  of  the  ocean  and  the  commercial  wealth  of  the 
ancient  empires,  whose  population  includes  more  than  one-half  of,  that 
of  the  earth,  and,  added  to  the  prospect  of  its  own  development  in 
mineral  wealth  and  extraordinary  agricultural  and  grazing  capacities 
as  well  as  the  anticipation  of  a  large  trade  with  the  empires  of  Eastern 
Asia,  was  the  hope  of  acquiring  the  rich  commerce  of  the  Indies, 
which  had  hitherto  been  diverted  thousands  of  miles  upon  the  Atlan- 
tic seaboard,  all  demonstrated  clearly  the  original  need  of  railroad 
communication  with  our  new  Pacific  possessions,  which  exceeded  in 
area,  wealth  of  soil  and  mineral  deposits  many  of  the  more  powerful 
kingdoms  and  empires  of  the  Old  World.  ^ 

91 


92  ^ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKT     MOUJTTAIXS. 

The  commercial  and  social  requirements  of  the  Pacific  States  and 
Territories,  the  military  need  by  the  National  Government,  the  devel- 
opment of  mining  industries  in  the  intermediate  ^territories,  the  neces- 
sities of  the  rapidly  increasing  population  along  the  temperate  belt 
across  the  continent,  as  well  as  an  agent  to  expand  the  productive 
power  in  the  life  work  of  its  social  organism,  the  short  road  impera- 
tively required  to  avoid  sending  passengers,  mails  and  freight  through 
the  tropics,  across  a  foreign  territory,  a  distance  of  6,000  miles,  or 
through  the  Antarctic  Ocean  half  way  around  the  world,  all  demanded 
that  such  a  road  should  be  established. 

After  the  annexation  of  Cahfomia,  many  means  were  proposed  to 
construct  the  road.  During  the  years  1853  to  1856,  in  accordance  with 
the  act  of  March  3rd,  1853,  the  Government,  through  the  war  depart- 
ment, organized  and  executed  a  series  of  surveys  and  explorations, 
from  the  Missouri  River  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  to  ascertain  the 
most  practicable  routes  to  the  coast.  Reports  were  made  upon  the 
extreme  northern  route  (Stevens)  between  the  forty-seventh  and 
forty-ninth  parallels  of  north  latitude,  the  route  of  the  forty-first  par- 
allel (the  Mormon  route),  the  route  of  the  thirty-eighth  parallel  (Ben- 
ton's great  central  or  "  Buffalo  Trail "  route),  the  route  of  the  thirty- 
fifth  parallel  (Rusk's  route),  and  the  route  of  the  thirty-second  par- 
allel (El  Paso  and  Gila  to  the  Pacific)  through  the  Gadsden  Purchase. 

Subsequently  it  became  a  national  question,  and  the  platform  of 
both  parties  endorsed  the  movement  and  each  advocated  the  building 
of  the  road.  Presidents  Pierce,  Buchanan  and  Lincoln,  each  in  turn, 
transmitted  to  Congress  special  messages  recommending  legislative  aid. 
Finally  the  act  of  Congress  approved  July  1st,  1 802,  was  passed,  and 
active  measures  instituted  for  the  building  of  the  road.  But  before 
the  acquisition  of  California  and  adjacent  territory  by  the  treaty  of 
Guadaleupe  Hidalgo,  the  subject  of  a  trans-continental  railroad  was 
agitated  by  the  people.  As  early  as  1838  a  public  meeting  was  held 
at  Dubuque,  Iowa,  to  express  opinions  favorable  to  the  building  of  a 
railroad  to  the  Pacific  coast.  Public  ajttention  was  again  directed  to 
it  upon  the  settlement  of  the  Northwestern  boundary  question  by  the 
Ashburton  treaty  of  1842. 

In  181:5  Senator  Douglas  proposed  a  grant  of  alternate  sections  of 
land  to  the  States  of  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois  and  Iowa,  to  aid  in  building 
a  railroad  from  Lake  Jrie  via  Chicago  and  Rock  Island  to  the  Missouri 


ABRAHAM   LINCOLN. 


06 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  95 

Eiver.  He  also  introduced  a  bill  to  organize  the  Territory  of  Nebraska, 
extending  from  the  Missouri  Kiver  westward,  and  the  Territory  of 
Oregon,  from  the  summit  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
and  to  reserve  to  each  of  said  Territories  the  alternate  sections  of 
lands  for  forty  miles  on  each  side  of  the  line  of  railroad,  from  a  point 
on  theMissouri  River  where  the  Lake  Erie  road  should  cross  the  same, 
and  thence  to  the  navigable  waters  of  the  Pacific,  in  the  Territory  of 
Oregon,  or  on  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  should  California  be  annexed 
in  time. 

To  assist  in  the  construction  of  such  a  vast  work  of  internal 
improvement.  Congress  granted  to  three  separate  routes  large 
quantities  of  the  public  lands.  But  while  the  road  became  constantly 
more  necessary,  its  progress  was  continuously  delayed,  on  account  of 
the  outbreak  of  the  war  and  the  diversion  of  capital  to  other  channels, 
apparently  more  promising. 

It  became  evident  that  if  the  colossal  enterprise  was  to  be 
accomplished,  it  must  be  through  direct  aid  from  the  General  Govern- 
ment. Hitherto  a  serious  obstacle  to  such  a  course  presented  itself  in 
the  theory  of  the  strict  constructionists  of  the  Constitution,  that  Con- 
gress was  not  possessed  of  the  power  to  aid  such  work  by  the  grant  of 
either  land  or  money  subsidies.  The  traditional  policy  of  the  Gov- 
ernment was  thus  opposed  to  the  aid  of  the  enterprise,  although  it 
was  apparent  that  its  completion  would  unite  the  country  in  a  political 
and  geographical  unit,  and  prevent  the  seat  of  rival  and  perchance 
hostile  empires.  The  exigencies  arising  from  the  war  between  the 
States  instantaneously  and  radically  changed  the  theory  and  attitude 
of  the  nation,  and  Congress  came  to  the  relief  of  the  only  route 
that  had  advanced  at  all  in  the  undertaking,  and  loaned  its  credit  to 
an  amount  estimated  to  be  half  sufficient  to  construct  the  road  from 
the  Missouri  to  the  Pacific,  providing  for  its  repayment  by  the  serv- 
ices of  the  road  or  a  small  percentage  upon  its  future  business. 

This  subsidy  was  granted  to  the  central  route,  being  constructed 
by  two  separate  corporations,  the  Union  Pacific  building  westward 
from  Omaha,  and  the  Central  Pacific  building  eastward  from  Sacra- 
mento. The  amount  of  the  subsidy  to  be  equally  divided  among 
these  two  companies,  or  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  miles  com- 
pleted and  the  difficulty  of  construction,  was  $50,000,000.  A  much 
smaller  sum  was  also  granted  for  an  eastern  branch  on  this  side  of  the 


96  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

Rocky  Mountains,  known  as  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company, 
Eastern  Division,  or  the  Smoky  Hill  Route  running  from  Kansas  City 
to  Denver.  The  land  grant  was  12,800  acres  pef  mile.  The  road  was 
required  to  be  first-class. 

Under  this  stimulus  the  two  companies  made  rapid  progress,  each 
attempting  to  reach  the  goal,  Salt  Lake  City,  first.  The  Central  Pacific 
Railroad  Company  being  less  affected  by  the  war,  and  stirred  to 
additional  effort  by  the  immense  traffic  between  California  and  the  rich 
mining  regions  of  Xevada  and  Idaho,  in  its  earlier  operations  made 
the  swifter  progress.  K^evertheless  the  work  on  the  Union  Pacific  line 
was  pushed  with  great  vigor,  and  gave  promise  of  completion  many 
years  before  the  time  fixed  b}'^  the  act. 

It  may  prove  interesting  to  state  that  the  act  of  Congress  incor- 
porating the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company  made  it  the  duty  of  the 
corporators,  who  were  styled  in  said  act  "the  Board  of  Commissioners 
of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  and  Telegraph  Company,"  to  meet  for 
organization  at  Chicago,  at  the  call  of  the  commissioners  named  in 
said  act  for  the  State  of  Illinois.  Accordingly,  on  the  second  day  of 
September,  1862,  they  assembled  at  Bryan  Hall,  Chicago,  and  organized 
permanently  by  the  appointment  of  "William  B.  Ogden,  of  Chicago, 
president;  Thomas  "W.  Olcott,  of  New  York,  treasurer,  and  Henry  V. 
Poor,  of  I^ew  York,  secretary. 

A  resolution  was  adopted  accepting  the  act  of  incorporation  in 
behalf  of  the  company,  and  directing  a  certified  copy  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  convention  to  be  filed  in  the  department  of  the  interior. 

On  the  13th  day  of  October  of  the  following  year,  1863,  the 
directors,  who  had  been  chosen  upon  the  previous  day,  assembled  at 
New  York  City,  and  elected  from  their  own  number  John  A.  Dix, 
president;  Thomas  C.  Durant,  vice-president;  J.  J.  Cisco,  treasurer; 
and  H.  Y.  Poor,  secretary.  Brigham  Young,  of  Utah,  w^as  one  of  the 
directors. 

On  the  7th  of  March,  1864,  Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the 
United  States,  established  the  initial  point  of  the  road  at  Omaha,  on 
the  western  boundry  of  the  State  of  Iowa,  east  of  and  opposite  to 
the  east  line  of  section  10,  in  township  15  north,  of  range  13  east,  of  the 
sixth  principal  meridian,  in  the  Territory  of  Nebraska. 

On  the  19th  of  Jul3%  1864,  the  President  appointed  three  directors 
on  the  part  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States;  also  three 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  97 

commissioners  to  examine  the  road  or  roads,  as  authorized  by  the  act  of 
incorporation. 

The  Central  Pacific  Kailroad  Company,  on  the  24th  of  December, 
1862,  also  accepted  oiRcially  the  provisions  of  the  act  entitled  "  An 
Act  To  Aid  in  the  Construction  of  a  Eailroad  and  Telegraph  Line 
from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  etc.,"  approved  July 
1st,  18G2. 

On  the  6th  of  July,  1864,  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  acknowl- 
edged the  receipt  of  the  map  of  the  general  route  of  the  Central  Pa- 
cific road,  and  directed  the  withdrawal  from  preemption,  private  entry 
and  sale  of  the  public  lands  on  each  side  of  said  route,  for  twenty -five 
miles  in  width. 

On  the  8th  of  July,  1864,  President  Abraham  Lincoln  appointed 
three  commissioners  to  examine  the  road. 

On  the  12th  of  January,  1864,  the  President,  in.  pursuance  of 
the  act  of  Congress,  fixed  the  point  where  the  line  of  the  Central 
Pacific  Railroad  crosses  Arcade  Creek  in  the  Sacramento  Yalley  as 
the  western  base  of  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains.  From  this  point, 
until  the  above  range  was  crossed  and  the  level  plains  beyond  reached, 
the  subsidy  granted  a  mile  was  much  greater  than  that  for  the  straight 
levels. 

The  work  of  grading  was  commenced  in  1863.  The  first  shipment 
of  iron  reached  Sacramento,  October  8th,  1863,  and  track-laying  imme- 
diately began  and  was  vigorously  prosecuted.  Great  obstacles  were 
met  and  overcome,  as  this  mountain  work  progressed,  in  the  deep  cuts 
through  rock  and  hard  cement  requiring  continual  blasting. 

A  feature  in  the  construction  of  this  road  w^as  the  employment  of 
the  Chinese  laborer,  principally,  for  the  work,  and  to  this  fact  may  be 
ascribed  the  great  immigration  of  the  Chinese  to  California,  led  thither 
by  the  reward  for  their  labor  on  this  road.  As  a  further  inducement 
to  enlist  private  capital  in  this  semi-public  enterprise,  the  Central 
Pacific  Company  was  authorized  to  issue  its  own  first  mortgage  bonds 
to  the  same  amount  with  the  bonds  issued  by  the  United  States  for 
the  purpose  which  should  have  precedence  over  all  others.  In  other 
words,  they  were  made  by  law  an  absolute  first  lien  upon  the  road,  its 
franchises,  improvements,  etc. 

The  chief  difficulties  apprehended  in  the  construction  of  the  great 
rail  highway  to  the  Pacific  were  the  three  lofty  mountain  crosses  and 

7 


98  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOCXTAINS. 

the  deep  winter  snow  obstructions.  The  latter  was  overcome  bj  the 
building  of  forty  miles  of  snow  sheds  ;  time  proved  the  former  to  be 
falacious.  Upon  the  practical  test  they  proved^  to  be  in  no  wise  for- 
midable. At  the  very  outset  of  its  career  the  Central  Pacific  Company 
was  compelled  to  meet  the  difficulty^  in  its  worst  fomu  The  towering 
Sierras  had  to  be  crossed  within  the  first  hundred  miles.  In  fact,  the 
two  mountain  ranges  were  crossed  at  elevations  of  over  7,000  feet,  or 
nearly  three  times  the  height  of  any  railroad  hue  previously  con- 
structed upon  the  continent.  The  maximum  grade  was  at  116  feet  to 
the  mile,  while  the  bulk  of  the  heavy  grade  was  at  105  feet  to  the 
mile,  with  numerous  level  intervals.  At  the  summit  of  the  Sierras  the 
crest  of  the  ridge  was  pierced  by  a  tunnel  1,658  feet  in  length,  the 
longest  on  the  road.  There  were,  likewise,  numerous  curves,  none  of 
which,  however,  have  a  radius  of  less  than  ten  degrees.  And  thus  the 
vast  undertaking  was  prosecuted  to  a  successful  termination  six  years 
before  the  time  allotted  by  the  act  of  Congress  for  its  completion.  It 
was  a  colossal  scheme  to  annihilate  by  steam  the  boundless  space  be- 
tween the  two  oceans. 

It  was  a  fruitful  exhibition  of  the  jwwer  and  genius  and 
marvelous  energy  that  characterizes  the  American  race.  To  push 
a  railroad  over  plains,  deserts,  rivers  and  mountains,  where  every- 
thing had  to  be  transported,  with  no  eastern  communication  by  rail 
when  the  work  was  begun,  and  onlj^  a  distant  water-way  by  the 
Missouri,  with  no  timber  for  ties,  no  iron,  save  that  which  was 
brought  all  the  way  from  Pennsylvania  via  Chicago  &  St.  Joseph, 
Missouri ;  with  labor  to  be  drawn  from  the  heart  of  the  nation  upon 
the  East  and  the  Chinese  empire  on  the  West,  and  carried  far  beyond 
the  pale  of  civilization  or  the  luxury  of  bed  and  board,  save  the  rough 
carhouses  on  the  track,  in  which  the  men  slept  and  ate  and  cooked 
their  meals,  away  out  in  the  wilderness,  where  the  wolf  prowled  and 
the  savage  roamed  at  will  —  to  build  a  road  under  such  conditions 
would  seem  to  demand  the  skill  and  courage  of  a  Caesar  or  a  Marl 
borough  !  But  to  build  it  as  successfully  as  this  vast  road  was  built- 
and  as  rapidly  as  it  was  constructed,  was  the  exhibition  of  the  skill, 
genius  and  prowess  that  crowns  American  industry  with  the  laurel, 
and  emblazons  upon  its  banners  the  marvelous  victories  of  mind  over 
matter.  It  may  have  been  a  costly  enterprise,  considering  dollars  and 
cents  alone,  but  when  taken  into  consideration  with  the  blessings  that 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  EOCKY  MOUNTAINS.  99 

flow  from  its  construction — the  immense  travel  which  passes  to  and  fro 
between  China  and  Europe,  the  vast  expansion  of  the  Western  States 
and  Territories ;  the  stimulation  of  the  great  mining  industries,  and 
the  equally  important  national,  military,  social  and  civilizing  influences 
created  by  its  advent,  and  which  have  swiftly  followed  its  completion, 
the  road  would  have  been  cheap  at  an  immeasurably  greater  cost 
of  construction. 

How  colossal  the  undertaking  must  have  appeared  to  those,  who 
assumed  the  burden  of  the  enterprise,  may  be  well  imagined  when  you 
consider  the  extent  and  variety  of  country  over  Avhich  the  road  passes. 
Four  great  natural  divisions  of  territory  lay  between  them  and  the 
Pacific  Ocean.  First,  the  plains,  which  Agassiz  declared  to  be  the 
grandest  of  all  glacial  deposits,  500  miles  wide  and  1,000  long, 
stretching  from  river  to  mountain,  and  from  the  British  line  to 
Mexico.  A  magnificent  "  earth-ocean  rolling  up  in  beautiful  green 
billows  along  the  shores  of  the  continental  streams  and  mountains 
that  border  it,  and  calming  down  in  the  center,  as  if  the  Divine  voice 
had  spoken  again,  as  of  yore,  '  Peace,  be  still ! '  "  This  boundless 
tract,  which,  in  the  days  of  my  boyhood,  I  read  upon  the  maps  of  my 
country  as  "  The  Great  American  Desert,"  is  to-day  the  vast  pasture 
grounds  of  the  nation,  upon  which  it  feeds  its  countless  herds,  where 
the  cultivated  soil  yields  fifty  bushels  of  wheat  to  the  acre,  and  whose 
fruit  was  among  the  finest  exhibited  at  the  Centennial  Exposition 
in  1876. 

Next,  the  mountains ;  500  miles  wide,  balancing  the  continent 
in  its  center,  and  distilling  from  the  clouds  the  refreshing  streams  that 
fertilize  the  earth  and  feed  the  waters  that  keep  in  motion  the  two 
oceans,  and,  strange  to  contemplate,  keeping  also  within  the  shadow  of 
its  grasp  a  great,  broad  belt  of  barren  land,  where  runs  no  living  stream, 
save  the  burning  waters  of  Bitter  Creek.  Bej'^ond  is  the  glowing 
descent  into  the  green  valley  of  the  great  Salt  Lake,  where  the  iron 
courser  should  roll  beneath  the  shadow  of  majestic  mountains,  at 
the  base  of  granite  walls,  through  snow  drifts  and  blooming  flowers, 
tall  cliffs  and  deep  ravines,  where  the  angry  waters  gather  and  boil 
over  boulders,  hurled  by  the  mighty  upheaval  which,  in  bygone  ages, 
carved  the  pathway  for  the  waters. 

The  third  division,  another  500  miles,  through  Utah  and  Nevada, 
embracing  more  of  the  great,  barren  waste  than  all  others,  and  more 


100  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

properly  deserving  the  title  of  ''  desert  lands,"  watered  only  by  the 
shallow  Humboldt  River,  fed  from   manv  mountain   rano-es.    Alono- 

♦  .,  c  O 

this  stream  the  track  of  the  road  would  run  for  300  mUes.  until  the 
river  should  sink  mysteriously  out  of  sight,  within  a  deep,  volcanic 
cavern  not  100  miles  from  the  California  line.  Through  this  dead  and 
desert  alkaline  waste  the  road  would  nm,  where  a  green  grass  blade 
was  unknown  and  no  flower  dreamed  of  life  and  beauty;  where  wild 
torrents  gashed  the  barren  hillsides,  and  wintry  storms  fashioned  the 
strange  castles  and  columns  that  pointed  the  way  to  ''  Death  Vallev." 

Among  the  foothills  of  the  Sierras  of  Nevada  would  begin  the 
fourth  and  final  division ;  thence  over  the  crests  of  mountains  covered 
with  dark  cypress  forests,  by  the  side  of  lakes  among  the  clouds,  be- 
neath the  shadow  of  granite  precipices,  along  the  edge  of  yawnin<y 
gulfs,  over  tall  cliffs  unsealed — ere  the  ladders  of  the  railroad  engineer 
were  lashed  to  their  lofty  sides  to  plant  his  level  on  their  wondrous 
heights,  and,  through  foot-hills  again,  seamed  and  scarred  by  the 
miners  brawny  arms,  and  •'  the  green  vineyards  on  the  banks  of  the 
Sacramento,  laden  with  autumn's  golden  offerings;  over  the  Tule 
marshes,  across  the  shadow  of  Mount  Diablo,  and  into  the  sandhills 
which  the  ocean's  wash  had  erected  as  its  own  barrier." 

This  was  the  pathway  marked  out  by  the  hand  of  nature  for  the 
track  of  the  iron  courser  across  the  American  continent.  Ui\daunted, 
the  brave  captains  of  industry  marshaled  their  forces  for  the  contest. 
The  Central  Pacific  was  the  first  in  the  field.  In  January,  1863,  the 
work  of  grading  began,  and  was  signalized  b\"  public  ceremonies  in 
which  the  State  legislature  and  other  oflBcers,  together  with  a  large 
concourse  of  prominent  citizens  ])articipated.  The  multitude  had  but 
little  faith  in  its  completion,  and  some  there  were  who  laughed  outright 
when  Leland  Stanford,  as  president  of  the  company,  shoveled  a  little 
sandy  earth  from  a  wagon  into  a  mudhole  at  the  foot  of  "  K  street "  in 
the  city  of  Sacramento,  where  the  grading  actually  began. 

Nevertheless,  the  work  thus  begun  went  on.  The  first  shipment 
of  rails  did  not  reach  Sacramento  until  October  of  that  year,  but  by 
June,  1864,  thirty-one  miles  of  track  had  been  laid  to  Newcastle,  930 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  the  greater  part  of  the  distance  ly- 
ing in  the  foothills  of  the  Sierras.  The  energy  and  capacity  exhibited 
by  the  company  induced  the  legislature  of  California,  of  1863,  to  pass 
laws  authorizing  San   Francisco,  Sacramento  and  Placer  counties  to 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE     ROCKY     MOU^sTAINS.  101 

issue  bonds  for  subscription  to  the  stock  of  the  company  in  the  sum  of 
$600,000,  of  $300,000,  and  of  $250,000,  respectively.  The  San  Fran- 
cisco subscription  was  finally  compromised  by  a  donation  of  bonds  of 
$400,000  without  stock.  The  legislature  of  1864  guaranteed  the  pay- 
ment by  the  State  of  interest  at  the  rate  of  seven  per  cent,  per  annum, 
gold,  or  $1,500,000  of  the  company's  bonds,  for  twenty  years.  Never- 
theless, the  total  subscription  of  stock  in  January,  1865,  did  not 
exceed  9,889  shares,  equal  to  $983,900. 

There  was  much  at  this  period  of  the  work  to  dishearten  the 
warmest  friends  of  the  enterprise.  It  was  exceedingly  difficult  to  dis- 
pose of  the  company's  bonds  at  a  remunerative  price ;  the  issue  of  the 
San  Francisco  bonds  was  prevented  by  hostile  suits,  carried  to  the 
supreme  court  until  1865;  the  credit  of  the  compan\^  was  assailed 
and  weakened  by  malicious  enmity  and  false  representations  that  the 
road  would  not  be  constructed  beyond  Dutch  Flat,  sixty-seven  miles 
from  Sacramento,  and  that  it  was  impossible  to  operate  it  further  in 
winter,  should  it  be  constructed. 

To  these  causes  the  subsequent  delay  of  the  work  is  ascribed.  It 
was  not  until  September,  1866,  that  the  road  was  completed  to  Alta, 
seventy  miles  east  of  Sacramento,  and  5,625  feet  above  sea  level.  In 
November  following  the  track  was  laid  to  Cisco,  5,911  feet  above  sea 
level,  an  elevation  of  2,286  feet  being  overcome  in  twenty-three  miles. 
The  summit  of  the  Sierras  was  still  thirteen  miles  distant,  but  except- 
ing the  work  on  the  tunnels  the  most  difficult  part  of  the  great  under- 
taking was  accomplished.  From  Colfax  to  Cisco,  thirty-eight  miles, 
an  elevation  of  3,463  feet  had  to  be  overcome,  and  the  average  grade 
required  was  over  seventy-one  feet ;  while  for  shorter  distances  a  grade 
from  105  to  116  feet  was  necessary,  the  latter  being  the  legal  maximum. 
Here  existed  a  great  field  of  operations.  Six  thousand  Chinamen 
were  at  work,  without  whose  aid,  as  previously  remarked,  the  Cali- 
fornia end  of  the  Pacific  road  could  not  have  been  built,  or  at  least 
within  the  time  prescribed  by  the  charter,  on  account  of  the  insuffi- 
ciency of  white  labor  on  that  coast. 

However,  after  the  advancement  of  the  road  to  this  point,  all 
thino:s  connected  therewith  moved  more  serenelv.  No  longer  was  the 
iron  highway  across  the  continent  a  thing  of  doubt  and  theory  —  suc- 
cess was  established. 

The  monthly  earnings  of  the  road  increased  to  $150,000.     The 


102  ECHOES    FBOM    THE      ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

great  heights  had  been  climbed  b\'  the  iron  horse  without  the  serious 
check  so  vigorously  prophesied  by  its  opponents,  and  confidence  being 
kindled  everywhere  in  its  ultimate  completion  and  permanent  pros- 
perity, its  bonds  were  now  taken  with  an  eagerness  that  astonished 
and  gratified  its  friends. 

Work  on  the  eastern  end  of  the  road  \»as  not  begun  by  the 
Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company^  for  eighteen  months  after  that  on 
the  Central  Pacific  was  inaugurated  —  not  until  the  summer  of  1S65. 
The  Eastern  company,  as  already  explained,  had  a  level  plain  for  its 
operations  for  5(K)  miles;  had  more  capital  to  sustain  it  and  no  dififer- 
ence  in  currency  to  overcome,  and  but  a  short  distance,  comparatively^ 
to  transport  its  supplies.  The  bond  subsidy  of  $32,000  a  mile  on  the 
plains  with  a  grade  of  only  seven  feet  to  the  mile,  was  more  than 
sufficient  to  pay  the  cost  of  the  road,  while  the  up-grade  of  the  Central 
Pacific  to  the  Sierras  cost  more  than  double  the  highest  subsidy  of 
$48,000  per  mile.  But  the  Union  Pacific  made  fast  time  when  the 
work  was  once  begun.  In  a  single  year  it  laid  track  to  operate  200 
miles  west  of  Omaha,  and  continued  its  work  while  the  Central  was 
delayed  half  a  year  by  deep  snows.  By  March,  1866,  the  Union 
Pacific  had  extended  its  track  300  miles  west  of  Omaha;  sixty-five 
miles  were  laid  in  one  month,  and  three  miles  in  a  single  exceptional 
day.  The  staging  time  across  the  gap  between  the  two  iron  roads  had 
been  reduced  to  ten  daj's.  Another  achievement  in  the  construction 
of  railroads  had  tended  greatly  to  aid  the  Union  Pacific  in  its  rapid 
advancement — the  completion  of  the  Xcrth western  railroad  between 
Chicago  and  Omaha.  The  connection  by  rail  between  these  cities 
in  December,  1866,  enabled  the  Union  Pacific  to  transport  all  its 
materials  and  supplies  over  the  Northwestern  and  lay  them  at  their 
doors  without  a  break  in  their  railroad  continuity,  while  those  of  the 
Central  Pacific  were  sailing  around  Cape  Horn,  a  distance  of  19,000 
miles.  B}'^  the  middle  of  the  summer  of  1867  the  Central  Pacific  had 
reached  the  summit  of  the  Sierras;  fifteen  tunnels, embracing  a  length 
of  6,262  feet,  were  far  advanced  toward  completion,  and  10,000  men 
and  1.300  teams  were  working  on  the  grade  down  the  eastern  slope. 
The  Union  Pacific,  with  a  larger  force,  was  laying  track  at  the  rate  of 
two  and  a  half  miles  per  day,  and  were  well  on  to  the  foothills  of  tha 
Rocky  Mountains.  That  j>oint  was  reached  in  October,  and  the  road 
was  advanced  500  miles  west  of  Omaha.     Here  began  the  slower  and 


103 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  105 

more  difficult  work  of  the  Union  Pacific,  while  the  Central  now 
possessed  smooth  sailing.  On  the  30th  of  November,  186Y,  the  first 
passenger  train  of  the  Central  Pacific  reached  the  Sierras'  summit, 
and  planted  the  banner  of  omnipotent  industry  upon  its  lofty  crest.  A 
world  of  thought  and  activity  of  brain  and  brawn  —  a  wondering 
world,  whose  doubts  had  delayed,  but  whose  praise  and  gratitude  now 
waj  boundless  —  lay  at  the  feet  of  this  iron  courser,  whose  breath  of 
steam  mingled  with  the  vapor  of  the  clouds.  Thus  the  work  went  on 
over  plains  and  altitudes  reaching  7,000  and  8,000  feet.  In  five  years 
nearly  700  miles  of  track  had  been  laid  by  the  two  companies.  Now 
they  were  nearly  equi-distant  from  Promontory  Point,  at  the  head  of 
Great  Salt  Lake.  The  eastern  company  522  miles,  the  western  545. 
As  the  summer  opened,  the  race  began  with  renewed  energy.  The 
great  armies  of  industry,  thoroughly  drilled  and  equipped  for  the  con- 
test, were  each  marching  on  to  the  grandest  victory  ever  achieved  over 
the  forces  of  nature  upon  the  broad  continent.  Both  companies, 
strong  and  reliant,  possessing  ample  means  and  eager  for  the  conflict, 
were  struggling  Avith  all  their  might  to  reach  a  common  goal  —  the 
rich  harvest  of  Government  subsidies  and  the  control  of  the  carrying 
trade  of  the  gold  fields  and  agricultural  wealth  of  the  intermediate 
Territories.  An  army  of  25,000  workmen,  with  pick  and  shovel  and 
blasting  material,  and  6,000  teams  with  all  the  vast  stores  and  sup- 
plies necessary  for  their  maintenance,  were  engaged  in  ceaseless  labor 
upon  the  road,  while  600  tons  of  material  for  its  construction  were 
daily  forwarded  from  either  end  of  the  track.  The  woods  and  rocks 
rang  with  the  sound  of  their  blows  as  the  iron  rails  were  laid  and 
spiked  to  the  earth.  Nearly  100  locomotives  and  several  hundred  cars 
on  the  Central  Pacific,  and  as  many  more  on  the  eastern  line,  were 
passing  and  repassing  with  material,  supplies  and  laborers.  Every 
man  who  could  be  enlisted  was  sent  to  the  front.  The  wharves  of  San 
Francisco  and  Sacramento  were  piled  with  iron  rails,  and  at  one  time 
thirty  vessels  were  en  route  around  Cape  Horn  with  rolling  stock  for 
the  Central  Pacific,  while  other  large  quantities  were  transported 
across  the  Isthmus.  The  same  energy  was  displayed  on  the  eastern 
end.  Everything  available  was  brought  into  requisition  to  advance 
the  road.  Ties  were  cut  100  miles  in  the  heart  of  the  woodland  belt, 
floated  down  stream  and  borne  on  ox-teams  to  the  line  of  the  railroad 
and  transported  thence  by  rail  to  end  of  the  track.    The  great  overland 


106  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

system  of  telegraph  lines,  itself  the  pioneer  of  the  railroad,  became 
the  ally  of  the  stupendous  enterprise,  and  flashed  the  words  of  command 
along  the  vast  line  of  labor,  and  across  the  continent  to  the  seaboard 
depots  of  the  two  ocean  cities.  Iso  nation  in  the  world  had  ever 
before  witnessed  such  track  laying.  The  fact  is  recorded  that  more 
ground  was  ironed  in  a  day,  than  was  traversed  by  the  ox-teams  of  the 
pioneers  of  '49. 

And  thus  the  road  progressed  until  the  morning  of  the  10th 
of  June,  1869,  when  the  last  spike  in  the  last  rail  was  to  be  driven.  It 
was  a  memorable  occasion  in  the  annals  of  great  enterprises.  It  was 
a  da}^  of  grand  industrial  triumph.  The  genius  of  man  had  subju- 
gated the  rude  forces  of  nature,  and  the  people's  representatives  had 
gathered  from  the  wave  lines  of  both  ocean  shores  to  celebrate  the 
event.  In  the  early  gray  of  the  moaning  a  band  of  Union  Pacific 
workmen  began  closing  the  gap  which  had  purposely  been  left  open 
on  their  end  of  the  line.  At  10  o'clock  the  sound  of  steam  whistles 
announced  that  the  ceremonies  of  laying  the  last  rail  by  the  officers 
and  friends  of  the  road  present  would  now  begin.  Governor  Stan- 
ford and  Vice-President  Durant  shook  hands  over  the  rail  that  was 
laid  in  its  place.  They  were  the  two  great  captains  who  had  mar- 
shaled the  armies  of  industry  across  the  continent.  They  were  the 
men  to  whom,  more  than  all  others,  belonged  the  honors  of  the  mighty 
achievement,  for  they,  by  their  courage,  faith  and  endurance  had 
wrung  victory  from  defeat.  But  their  able  lieutenants  were  there  also 
to  join  in  celebrating  the  victory. 

Two  gold  spikes  from  California  and  one  of  virgin  silver  from 
Nevada,  at  whose  forging  100  men  had  each  struck  a  blow,  had  been 
donated  for  the  work.  The  governor  of  Arizona,  on  behalf  of  his 
Territory,  presented  one  of  silver  also.  A  laurel  tie,  hewn  from  the 
forests  of  California  for  this  special  occasion,  was  adjusted  in  its  place. 
As  each  spike  should  be  the  last,  one  of  tiie  golden  ones  was  presented 
by  Governor  Stanford  to  Vice-President  Durant,  who  should  drive  it 
as  the  Jast  on  his  road,  and  the  other  by  Governor  Stanford,  the  last 
in  fact  as  he  had  shoveled  the  first  spadeful  of  earth  in  Sacramento  in 
the  hour  of  doubt  and  uncertainty. 

It  had  been  arranged  by  the  superintendents  of  the  telegraph 
lines  that  connection  should  be  made  with  fire-alarm  bells  in  all  Amer- 
ican cities  that  possessed  them,  to  be  struck  when  the  hammer  drove 


ECHOES    FEOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S. 


107 


the  last  spike  home,  and  instantaneously  both  sides  of  the  continent 
should  rejoice  at  the  completion  of  the  work  by  the  ringing  of  bells 
and  firing  of  cannon.  Prayer  was  offered.  At  its  conclusion  the 
silver  spikes  were  driven.  Then  Vice-President  Durant  drove  his 
spike  of  gold.  Now  Leland  Stanford,  with  his  uplifted  arm  waited 
the  moment  that  should  signal  the  nation  that  the  mighty  work  Avas 
ended.  The  blow  fell,  and  the  roar  of  cannon  on  both  sides  of  the 
continent  announced  that  the  nation  was  a  geographical  as  well  as  a 
political  unit. 


DRIVING  THE  GOLDEN  SPIKE. 

An  interesting  feature  of  the  ceremonies  was  the  presence  of  the 
officers  of  a  detachment  of  the  Twenty-first  United  States  Infantry, 
with  their  wives,  on  their  way  to  California.  The  detachment  came 
up  under  arms,  the  band  playing  an  inspiring  national  air.  There 
Avere  also  present  two  ladies  from  California,  one  of  them,  Mrs. 
Eyan,  wife  of  Governor  Stanford's  agent  at  Ogden,  the  other  Mrs. 
Strowbridge,  the  wife  of  the  superintendent  of  construction  of  the 


108  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

Central  Pacific  Company,  who  had  shared  with  her  husband  all  the 
privations  attendant  upon  the  long,  continuous  labor  and  enforced 
absence  from  home  during  the  building  of  the  Western  line  of  the  road. 
She  had  been  with  him  during  all  the  years  of  his  employment  in  con- 
structing the  line,  and  for  this  she  was  assigned  the  post  of  honor  as 
"  Heroine  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad.*' 

Telegrams  were  sent  to  the  President  of  the  United  States,  the 
various  heads  of  departments,  the  associated  press,  and  other  promi- 
nent quarters,  and  messages  of  congratulation  poured  in  from  Wash- 
ington, Xew  York,  Boston,  Philadelphia,  Chicago,  St.  Louis,  Cincinnati, 
and  all  the  larger  cities  of  the  Union,  proclaiming  the  rejoicings  of  the 
people  that  the  great  work  had  finalh'  been  accomplished. 

But,  while  the  road  was  completed  amid  the  general  rejoicings  ot 
the  nation,  and  its  results  have  immeasurably  benefited  all  sections  to 
such  an  extent  as  to  prevent  cavU  upon  the  Government  for  loaning  its 
credit  and  assuming  its  financial  burdens,  3'et  the  facts  remain  patent 
that,  by  a  skillful  arrangement  of  the  working  affairs  of  the  road,  enor- 
mous profits  were  reaped  by  a  few  interested  parties ;  the  immense 
Grovernment  subsidies  were  converted  from  their  primary  purpose,  and 
made  to  enrich  those  not  contemplated,  but  forbidden  by  law,  and 
that  the  cost  of  the  road  was  thereby  nearl}'  doubled. 

By  their  munificent  charter,  the  Grovernment  offered  the  Union 
Pacific  and  the  Central  Pacific  roads  a  loan  of  more  than  sixty 
millions  of  dollars  and  a  land  grant  of  20,000,000  acres.  The  land  at 
its  minimum  price  of  $2.50  per  acre  was  valued  at  $50,000,0(K) 
more,  and  at  its  average  selling  price  of  $5  i>er  acre.  §100,000,000. 
Nevertheless  the  great  capitalists  of  the  country  concluded  that 
the  risk  of  building  2,000  miles  of  railroad  through  an  uninhab- 
ited country,  for  the  most  part  an  untrodden  wilderness  of  plain 
and  mountain,  where  there  was  no  local  traffic  to  aid  its  oper- 
ation, should  it  be  successfully  constructed,  was  more  than  thej'^ 
at  first  were  willing  to  assume.  As  a  further  inducement,  as 
already  shown.  Congress  still  aided  them  by  the  passage  of  a  bill  en- 
abling: them  to  issue  their  own  bonds  to  the  same  amount  as  those 
issued  by  the  Government,  which  were  to  be  a  first-mortgage  on  the 
road  and  its  equipment.  The  Government  thus  assumed  the  whole 
financial  burden  of  the  undertaking,  with  the  further  concession  to  the 
Union  Pacific  to  issue  its  construction   bonds   one  hundred  miles  in 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  109 

vance  of  the  construction.  To  the  far-sighted  financier  there  was  now 
much  money  to  be  made.  Oakes  Ames  was  a  representative  in  Con- 
gress from  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  a  member  of  the  railroad  com- 
mittee which  reported  the  last  named  bill  of  relief.  His  ability  as  a 
financier  was  recognized.  He  was  a  millionaire  manufacturer  of  agri- 
cultural implements.  He  did  a  business  of  $1,000,000  per  year, 
and  kept  no  books,  although  three  factories  were  in  full  operation.  He 
was  clear-sighted  and  saw  that  the  road  could  be  built  for  a  much 
smaller  sum  than  the  Government  offered.  He  solved  the  question 
how  to  transfer  this  excess  of  values  from  the  treasury  of  the  United 
States  to  the  pockets  of  the  builders.  He  devised  this  scheme :  A 
corporation  of  a  different  name,  but  owned  by  the  same  parties,  should 
build  the  new  road,  receive  all  the  profits  and  divide  them  among  its 
stockholders,  who  were  also  stockholders  in  the  Union  Pacific,  but  who 
as  such  could  not  legall}^  receive  them.  A  first-mortgage  indenture 
was  made,  IsTovember  1st,  1865,  to  Edwin  D.  Morgan,  of  New  York, 
and  Oakes  Ames,  of  Massachusetts,  as  representatives  of  the  wealthy 
capitalists  who  w%re  to  lend  it  money,  of  the  road  bed  of  the  uncon- 
structed  road  for  which  the  money  was  to  be  borrowed.  Then  fol- 
lowed the  organization  whereby  Oakes  Ames,  Cornelius  S.  Bushnell, 
John  B.  Alley,  T.  C.  Durant  and  their  associates  should  build  the  road 
and  divide  among  themselves  all  proceeds  not  used  in  its  construction. 
The  corporation  they  used  for  this  purpose  was  first  chartered  by  the 
State  of  Pennsylvania,  and  known  as  the  "'Pennsylvania  Fiscal  Agenc3^" 
It  was  modeled  after  the  Credit  Mobilier  of  France.  George  Francis 
Train,  as  the  agent  of  Thomas  C.  Durant,  purchased  this  charter  from 
its  owners  for  the  sum  of  $26,645.  It  was  immediately  re-christened  as 
"The  Credit  Mobilier  of  America."  The  stockholders  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  now  subscribed  for  the  same  amount  of  stock  in  the 
Credit  Mobilier  that  they  held  in  the  railroad.  Thomas  C.  Durant, 
vice-president  of  the  road,  took  6,041  shares,  representing  an  invest- 
ment of  $604,100 ;  Oliver  Ames,  3,125  shares ;  Oakes  Ames,  900,  and 
S.  Hooper  &  Co.  and  II.  S.  McComb  each  500  shares.  By  this  pro- 
ceeding the  eastern  end  of  the  road  was  transferred  entire  to  the 
Credit  Mobilier.  The  first  specified  act  of  the  new  organization  was 
to  make  the  best  sort  of  a  contract  with  the  Union  Pacific.  H.  M. 
Hoxie  now  appeared,  a  confidential  friend  of  Yice-President  Durant, 
who  offered  to  build  and  equip  a  hundred  miles  of  the  road  on  certain 


110  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUlTrAIXS. 

specified  terms.  This  oflfer  was  acceptetl  and  signed,  not  by  Hoxie 
bat  by  H.  C.  Crane,  attorney  a  confidential  clerk  of  Dr.  Durant, 
with  the  further  agreement  that,  when  so  requested,  he  should  assign 
this  contract  to  Durant,  which  was  accordingly  done  within  sixty  days 
thereafter,  and  the  whole  scheme  resolved  itself  into  the  formula  of 
the  vice-president  of  the  road  contracting  with  himself  to  build  one 
hundred  of  its  miles.  "Within  five  days  this  contract  was  extended  146 
miles  further,  and  a  new  assignment  made  to  Durant  and  associates. 
This  contract  in  figures  cost  the  road  in  stock  and  bonds,  valued  at 
par,  812,974,416.24 ;  its  cost  to  the  Credit  Mobilier  was  $7,806,183.33. 
The  difference  of  over  $5,000,000,  after  deducting  expenses  of  selling 
the  bonds  was  divided  among  the  stockholders. 

It  was  the  necessity  of  procuring  funds  to  perform  these  contracts 
which  led  to  the  creation  of  the  Credit  Mobiher.  They  were  trans- 
ferred to  that  organization.  Oliver  Ames  was  chosen  its  President, 
and  $2,500,000  were  subscribed  for  the  prosecution  of  the  work  to 
the  stock  of  the  Credit  MobUier.  This  sum  being  in  time  exhausted, 
at  a  meeting  of  the  stockholders  of  the  Credit  Mobilier  in  Xew  York, 
it  was  decided  to  increase  the  capital  stock  of  the  organization  fifty 
per  cent.,  and  to  give  the  holders  of  old  stock  a  thousand-dollar  Pacific 
Railroad  bond  for  every  thousand  dollars  they  subscribed  to  the  stock 
of  the  Credit  Mobilier,  as  well  as  the  stock  which  they  subscribed. 
At  this  time  the  bonds  were  selling  at  ninety  cents,  and,  therefore  the 
stock  of  the  Credit  Mobilier,  which  afterward  became  so  valuable,  was 
pasteboard  for  ten  cents  on  the  dollar.  Ten  millions  of  the  bonds  were 
placed  on  the  market  at  ninety  cents  on  the  dollar,  and  the  work  was 
vigorously  pushed.  The  great  object  now  was  to  complete  as  many 
miles  as  possible  to  obtain  the  tremendous  profits  foreshadowed  by 
the  results  of  the  first  Hoxie  contracts.  The  next  contract  granted  was 
to  J.  M.  S.  Williams,  a  wealthy  merchant  of  Boston  and  a  large  sub- 
scriber to  the  stock  of  the  Credit  Mobilier.  This  contract  was  for  267 
miles  of  the  road,  at  $50,000  per  mile,  the  contract  immediatdly  as- 
signed to  trustees  chosen  by  the  Credit  Mobilier.  Two  millions  of 
dollars  on  this  contract  had  already  poured  into  the  coffers  of  the 
Credit  Mobilier,  when  it  was  annulled  by  legal  proceedings  instituted 
by  Vice-President  Durant.  However,  to  accomplish  the  same  object 
in  another  way  and  on  a  larger  scale,  with  the  consent  of  Mr. 
Durant,  the  celebrated   Compromise  Contract  was  made,  drawn  up 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  Ill 

under  the  advice  of  General  Butler,  by  the  terms  of  which  it  should 
begin  at  the  hundredth  meridian  and  extend  westward  667  miles,  for 
which  the  road  w^as  to  pay  for 


The  first  100  miles, 

$43,000  a  mile 

= 

$4,300,000 

"    next  167     " 

45,000     " 

= 

7,515,000 

«       "    100     " 

96,000    " 

= 

9,600,000 

It       u    100     " 

80,000    " 

= 

8,000,000 

"       "    100     " 

90,000    " 

= 

9,000,000 

u       u    100     " 

96,000    " 

= 

9,600,000 

667  $47,915,000 

But  of  this  667  miles,  138  had  been  already  built  and  paid  for, 
but  was  included  in  the  contract,  as  if  entirely  unconstructed,  so  that 
it  was  agreed  to  pay  Ames  &  Co.  $5,500,000  for  nothing.  The 
average  contract  price  for  each  mile  to  be  constructed,  after  de- 
ducting the  amount  already  built,  was  $89,000  and  the  average  cost  per 
mile  was  less  than  $40,000  or  less  than  one-half  offered  by  the  road. 
This  contract  was  made  by  the  company  with  Oliver  Ames  and  Oakes 
Ames,  his  brother,  August,  1867,  and  in  less  than  sixty  days  was 
transferred  to  the  Credit  Mobilier.  Within  sixty  days  from  the  sign- 
ing of  the  contract  a  dividend  of  120  per  cent,  was  declared.  Sixty 
per  cent,  of  it  was  paid  in  first  mortgage  bonds  of  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  Company,  amounting  to  $2,244,000,  and  sixty  per  cent,  was 
paid  in  the  stock  of  that  company,  amounting  to  another  $2,244,000. 
Sold  at  the  market  rate  at  that  time,  it  would  have  amounted  to 
$2,917,200,  equivalent  to  a  dividend  of  seventy-seven  per  cent. 

Before  this  contract  was  made  the  stock  of  the  Credit  Mobilier 
was  selling  at  ninety-five  cents  on  the  dollar,  immediately  afterward 
it  ascended  to  sixty  percent,  premium.  In  December  following  it  rose 
to  one  hundred  per  cent,  premium,  and  in  January,  1868,  it  sold  at  400 
per  cent,  premium. 

There  was  still  estimated  to  be  125  miles  not  yet  contracted  for  to 
the  point  where  the  Central  Pacific  would  build,  and  this  was  given  to 
J.  W.  Davis,  with  the  implied  understanding  that  as  soon  as  made  it 
should  be  assigned  to  the  Credit  Mobilier.  Under  this  contract  the 
remaining  portion  of  the  road  was  constructed,  at  a  cost  to  themselves 
of  $15,629,633.62,  and  a  charge  to  the  Company  of  $23,431,768.11,  a 
gain  of  nearly  eight  miUions  of  dollars. 


112  ECHOES    FROil    THE    BOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

Under  the  Ames  contracts  alone,  during  one  year,  dividends  were 
paid  of  545  per  cent,  on  the  par  value  of  the  stock  amounting  to  neariy 
twenty  millions  and  a  half.  The  last  dividend  of  200  per  cent,  was 
declared  in  December,  1868,  and  in  1869  a  division  was  made  of  13,000,- 
000  of  stock,  as  profits,  under  the  Davis  contract  forthe  last  125  miles. 

This  last  payment  closed  both  dividend  and  construction  accounts, 
and  the  Credit  Mobilier  retired  from  the  road  with  the  most  enormous 
profits  that  had  ever  been  grasped  by  a  similar  organization  in  the 
history  of  the  world.  The  gains  of  the  Central  Pacific  Company  were 
undoubtedly  as  large  as  those  of  the  eastern  branch,  but  there  was  no 
Credit  Mobilier  to  suck  the  life  blood  of  the  enterprise. 

Although  the  Government  subsidies  were  immense  and  profligately 
expended,  nevertheless  the  object  attained  was  far  greater  than  the 
outlay.  As  soon  as  the  road  was  opened  from  river  to  sea,  its  value  to 
the  Government  proved  to  be  far  greater  than  its  most  sanguine  friends 
had  conceived  or  predicted,  Forthe  transjxjrtation  of  the  mails,  troojis 
and  munitions  of  war,  between  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  coasts  and 
intermediate  points,  the  average  cost  to  the  Government  for  the  five 
years  previous  to  the  3'ear  1862,  according  to  the  report  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  War,  made  March  1st,  of  that  year,  averaged  $7,309,341  annu- 
ally. For  the  mails,  the  route  of  transportation  lay  partially  through 
foreign  States,  and  the  time  required  for  transmission  from  New  York 
to  San  Francisco  was  about  forty  days.  The  cost  to  the  Government 
by  HoUiday's  and  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  overland  stage  lines,  for  a  part 
of  the  service,  amounted  to  several  millions  per  year.  These  vast  out^ 
lays  were  immediately  diminished,  and  a  far  greater  service  performed 
in  a  much  shorter  space  of  time,  and  for  less  than  $2,000,000.  But  such 
saving  of  the  nation's  money  is  not  the  sole  benefit  derived  from  the 
construction  of  the  Pacific  Railroad,  The  rapidity  with  which  troops 
can  be  thrown  along  its  line  relieves  the  Government  in  a  great  meas- 
ure from  the  necessity  of  maintaining,  permanently,  large  bodies  at 
diflFerent  points  likely  to  be  menaced  by  hostile  Indians, 

To  demonstrate  the  rapidity  of  movement  over  this  continent  by 
means  of  this  vast  connecting  link  between  the  two  oceans,  it  is  related 
that  a  company  on  the  1st  of  June,  1876,  under  the  auspices  of 
the  late  Thomas  A,  Scott,  then  president  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
Company,  left  the  city  of  Xew  York  for  San  Francisco,  via  Chicago, 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  113 

and  i-eached  the  Golden  Gate  in  the  remarkable  space  of  time  of  eighty- 
three  hours  and  fifty-three  minutes,  consecutive  running  time,  the  dis- 
tance between  the  two  points  being  3,222  miles.  The  weight  of  tlie 
train  was  126  tons.  The  rate  of  speed  for  the  entire  distance,  includ- 
ing stops,  equaled  forty  miles  per  hour.  The  distance  between  ]^ew 
York  and  Pittsburgh,  44i  miles,  was  run  by  a  single  engine  in  ten 
hours  and  five  minutes;  that  between  Pittsburgh  and  Chicago,  469 
miles,  in  eleven  hours  and  thirty-one  minutes;  that  between  Chicago 
and  Council  Bluffs,  494  miles,  in  eleven  hours  and  thirty  minutes ;  that 
between  Council  Bluffs  and  Ogden  (the  western  terminus  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Poad),  1,034  miles,  in  twenty-four  hours  and  fifty  minutes ;  that 
between  Ogden  and  San  Francisco,  883  miles,  in  twenty- three  hours 
and  thirty-eight  minutes.  When  it  is  considered  that  this  wonderfully 
swift  journey  toward  the  setting  sun  was  made  across  four  formidable 
mountain  ranges  of  lofty  elevation,  the  wonder  is  more  complete.  The 
train  was  divided  into  parlor,  dining  room,  and  commodious  sleeping- 
room  cars,  and  it  can  be  readily  imagined  with  what  degree  of  ease 
and  comfort  the  entire  journey  was  made  between  the  shore  lines  of 
the  two  great  seas.  No  more  striking  illustration  can  be  given  to 
demonstrate  the  almost  complete  annihilation  of  time  and  space 
between  the  distant  antipodal  points  of  the  American  continent,  and 
the  social  intercourse  and  commerce  produced  by  the  construction  of 
the  Pacific  Railroad.  In  a  day,  or  an  hour  even,  there  can  be  accom- 
plished what  formerly  consumed  many  days  of  arduous  toil,  exposure 
and  hardship. 

Contrast  with  this  lightning  swiftness  the  ease  and  elegance  of 
railroad  travel  across  the  continent,  with  the  explorations  of  Lewis  and 
Clark,  in  1804,  in  which  eighteen  months  were  consumed  in  reaching 
the  Pacific  Ocean.  Likewise  with  the  still  later  explorations  of  John 
C.  Fremont  and  the  hardships  he  and  his  pioneer  party  were  compelled 
to  undergo.  Take,  likewise,  the  exodus  of  the  Mormon  emigrants  on 
their  way  to  found  the  Zion  of  the  Mountains  in  the  valley  of  the 
Great  Salt  Lake,  pursuing  Fremont's  trail ;  or  even  the  still  more  recent 
journeyings  by  the  long  and  weary  ways  of  the  overland  stage  lines, 
which  in  their  day  were  considered  swift  and  palatial  by  the  side  of 
the  "prairie  schooner,"  and  then  we  are  enabled  to  note  the  vast 
increase  of  comfort  and  speed  acquired  in  these  latter  days  by  the  brain 
and  brawn  of  the  nation,  coupled  with  the  results  attained  by  the 


114  ECHOES  FROM  THE  EOCKY  MOUXTAINS. 

progress  that  has  been  made  in  the  science  of  locomotion  within  the 
two  past  decades. 

Such  a  great  work  could  not  long  exist  without  alluring  from  the 
ranks  of  civilization  the  brave  and  adventurous  to  fill  the  natural 
avenues  of  trade  and  commerce  and  markets  of  remunerative  labor, 
which  it  opened  up  all  along  its  vast  line.  A  million  square  miles  of 
territory,  hitherto  inaccessible,  were  opened  up  to  the  enterprise  and 
capital  of  the  nation.  They  were  no  sooner  made  accessible  than  their 
vast  mineral  wealth  was  unfolded,  and  broad  areas,  for  generations 
presumed  to  be  sterile  and  barren,  were  found  to  be  the  finest  and 
most  prolific  wheat  fields  in  the  world.  The  Great  American  Desert 
vanished  in  a  day.  Populated  by  towns,  villages  and  cities,  and  sur- 
rounded by  millions  of  cultivated  acres,  with  prosperity  shining  like  a 
banner  of  light  in  the  clouds,  the  new  maps  of  the  nation  record,  in  the 
place  of  this  former  broad  belt  of  desert  lands,  the  geographical  out- 
lines of  a  land  of  beauty  and  abundance.  The  great  flow  of  immigra- 
tion induced  by  the  building  of  this  road  comi^elled  the  construction  of 
other  roads  in  the  interest  of  trade  and  commerce.  To  reach  the 
deposits  of  the  precious  metals  and  the  rich  valley's,  from  whose  grain 
fields  is  garnered  the  cereal  wealth  of  the  mountainous  west,  track 
lines  were  speedily  opened  and  their  resources  poured  into  the  lap  of 
the  nation.  These  laterals  have  a  mileage  many  fold  greater  than  that 
of  the  main  line.  Its  influence  did  not  end  here.  As  soon  as  the 
speedy  construction  of  the  Pacific  Railroad  became  assured,  great  num- 
bers of  lines  were  projected  in  all  the  extreme  "Western  States  and 
Territories  in  order  to  become  directly  connected  with  it.  Eight 
States  and  five  Territories,  directly  influenced  by  the  building  of  this 
road,  containing  an  area  of  1,200,000  square  miles,  embracing  every 
variety  of  climate  and  of  agricultural  and  mineral  resources,  since  its 
completion,  have  added  to  their  population  over  6,000,000.  Up  to 
1879  they  had  added  nearly  three  and  one-half  millions,  and  con- 
structed, since  1860,16,794  miles  of  railroad,  a  gain  of  16,000  miles. 


CHAPTER  TI. 

tTBTE  SOUTHERN  PACIFIC— THE  BOTJTB  MAEKED  OUT -INFANTILE  EFFORTS  TO 
CONSTRUCT  IT— THE  SOUTHERN  COMMERCIAL  CONVENTION— RESOLUTIONS 
ADOPTED— THE  BOAift  BEGUN  — WORK  SUSPENDED  —  THE  TEXAS  PACIFIC- 
ACTS  OF  CONGKESS  RELATING  THERETO  —  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ROUTE  — 
THOMAS  A.  SCOTT— OTHER  CONNECTING  RAILROAD  LINES  —  THE  LAND 
GRANT  BY  TEXAS  — EARNINGS  OF  THE  ROAD -EVENTS  CONNECTED  WITH 
ITS  CONSTRUCTION. 

The  construction  and  successful  working  of  the  Pacific  Railroad 
by  the  Central  Route  stimulated  the  building  of  two  other  lines  from 
the  Missouri  to  the  ooean  seaboard,  the  Northern  and  Southern  Pacific 
Roads. 

The  Southern  hne  was  that  upon  which  track  laying  was  first 
beo-un  in  the  construction  of  a  line  through  the  State  of  Texas,  and 
thence  through  New  Mexico,  Arizona  and  Southern  California  to  San 
Diego,  on  the  ocean  coast  in  the  southern  part  of  the  State.  In  later 
years,  when  the  completion  of  the  Southern  line  was  an  assured  fact, 
it  was  still  believed  that  San  Diego  would  be  its  terminus  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  A  town  was  laid  out,  wharves  built  and  city  lots 
sold  at  fabulous  prices  for  awhile.  A  change,  however,  was  made  in 
the  plans,  and  San  Francisco,  and  not  San  Diego,  became  the 
metropolis  of  the  road. 

The  infant  efforts  to  construct  this  road  are  interesting  in  fact 
and  detail.  A  large  and  influential  convention  of  representative  men 
from  the  Southern  and  Soutli western  States,  to  the  number  of  eight 
hundred,  and  known  as  the  Southern  Commercial  Convention,  assem- 
bled at  Savannah,  Georgia,  on  the  8th  of  December,  1856,  for  the 
purpose  of  discussing  matters  of  commerce  and  internal  improvements, 
and  of  political  economy  pertaining  to  that  section.  That  convention 
adopted  the  following  resolutions: 

I.  Resolved,  That  a  railroad  ought  to  be  constructed  from  the  Mississippi 
River,  by  way  of  El  Paso,  along  or  near  the  32d  degree  of  north  latitude  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean  ;  that  this  road  should  consist  of  separate  and  continuous  lines  ;  that 
it  should  be  incorporated  and  constructed  under  the  authority  of  the  State  and 
Territorial  legislatures,  so  far  as  they  can  constitutionally  do  it,  and  that  the  means. 

115 


% 

ll(i  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

of  construction  should  be  derived  from  individual,  corporate  aad  State  contri- 
butions, together  with"  such  aid  as  may  be  obtained  from  grants  of  the  public 
domain,  for  postal  and  military  contracts,  or  any  other  services  which  may  be 
lawfully  rendered  to  the  Federal  Grovemment  by  said  company. 

n.  BeaoUed,  That  it  is  hereby  recommended  to  the  Soiithern  and  Southwestern 
Eailroad  Companies,  that  in  the  event  any  section  of  said  road  shall  remain 
incomplete,  or  without  authority  of  construction  by  responsible  parties,  they  shall 
obtain  an  act  of  incorporation  authorizing  them  or  some  one  or  more  of  them  to 
uuadertake  the  construction  of  such  incomplete  section  ;  and  this  Convention  hereby 
invokes  for  the  enterprise  of  the  construction  of  such  railroad,  or  any  section  thereof, 
the  aid  and  approval  of  all  the  true  citizens  of  the  South,  whether  in  private  life  or  in 
public  station,  for  the  completion  of  a  work  upon  which  depends  greatly  the 
permanency  of  the  Union,  and  the  defense,  development  and  independence 
of  the  South. 

Two  previous  conventions,  held  at  Memphis  in  1845^9,  had 
passed  resolutions  of  general  import,  relating  to  the  construction  of 
a  Southern  Pacific  railroad,  but  this  was  the  first  expression  of  a 
specific  character  impressing  upon  the  Southern  people  the  importance 
of  its  early  construction.  It  will  be  observed  that  the  tone  of  the 
resolutions  are  in  strict  accordance  with  the  prevaiUng  ideas  concerning 
the  relation  of  the  States  to  the  General  Government,  and  the 
constitutional  right  of  Congress  to  grant  aid  to  the  undertaking  by 
subsidies  of  either  land  or  money.  All  is  left  to  the  States,  both  by 
way  of  charter  and  aid  in  the  construction.  Already  the  State  of 
Texas  had  granted  a  liberal  charter  through  its  domains  and  specific 
aid  by  grants  of  land,  10,240  acres  per  mile,  and  a  loan  of  $6,000  for 
each  mile  of  road  built,  and  a  company  had  been  organized,  with  its 
headquarters  at  New  Orleans,  and  ten  miles  of  the  road  had  been 
graded  and  cross-tied  within  the  time  required  by  the  charter,  and  the 
iron  procured  and  on  its  way  up  Red  River  for  the  completion  of 
twenty  miles,  as  provided  likewise  by  the  charter. 

The  convention  likewise  adopted  the  following : 

Be»alted,  That  this  Convention  recognizes  the  importance  of  a  speedy  connection, 
by  railway,  of  the  Southern  Atlantic  and  Gulf  States ;  and  as  a  means  of 
accomplishing  this  object  this  Convention  recommends  to  the  favorable 
consideration  of  the  respective  Legislatures  of  Georgia,  Alabama,  Mississippi, 
Louisiana  and  Texas  the  importance  of  an  early  completion  of  the  road  from  West 
Point,  Creorgia,  to  the  Mississippi  River,  by  way  of  Montgomery  in  Alabama  to  the 
Mississippi  Line,  and  the  Vicksburg  and  Shreveport  Road  in  Louisiana,  and  thence 
to  connect  with  the  Southern  Pacific  Road,  chartered  by  the  State  of  Texas. 

In  1849  Capt.  R.  B.  Marcy,  of  the  Fifth  Infantry,  United  States 
Army,  commanding  an  escort  from  Fort  Smith,  on   the    Arkansas 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIJS"S.  117 

River  to  Santa  Fe,  New  Mexico,  made  a  careful  survey  of  the 
intervening  country,  and  reported  to  the  Secretary  of  War  that  no 
serious  obstacle  existed  to  prevent  the  construction  of  a  Pacific  railway. 
The  route  he  traveled  from  Fort  Smith  to  Doiia  Ana,  a  town  on  the 
Rio  Grande,  a  short  distance  above  El  Paso,  he  regarded  as  more 
favorable  than  the  route  to  Santa  Fe.  This  was  the  line  of  road 
finally  adopted  for  its  construction. 

Forty  miles  of  the  road  constructed  under  the  charter  granted  by 
the  State  of  Texas  had  been  completed,  when  the  war  between  the 
States  began  and  put  an  end  to  all  such  undertakings.  The  iron  was 
needed  for  the  molding  of  cannon  balls  that  should  fly  swifter  than 
steam. 

Notwithstanding  this  was  one  of  the  three  routes  proposed  by 
the  early  act  of  Congress,  nothing  was  done  in  the  way  of  construction 
until  long  after  the  war  had  ceased.  The  act  of  March  3rd,  1871,  pro- 
vided for  the  incorporation  of  a  company  to  be  known  as  the  Texas, 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,  and  empowered  it  to  lay  out  and  construct 
a  continuous  line  of  railroad  from  Marshall,  Harrison  county,  Texas, 
over  the  32d  parallel  of  north  latitude  to  El  Paso,  and  thence  by  the 
most  direct  and  eligible  route  through  the  Territories  of  New  Mexico 
and  Arizona  to  a  point  on  the  Rio  Colorado,  at,  or,  near  the  Southeast 
boundary  of  the  State  of  California,  thence  to  San  Diego,  California, 
pursuing  the  line  of  route  on,  or,  near  the  32d  parallel  of  north  latitude 
as  far  as  possible. 

It  likewise  provided  that  the  company  should  commence  the 
construction  of  the  road  simultaneously  at  San  Diego  and  at  Marshall ; 
that  fifty  miles  should  be  built  within  two  years  and  the  road  com- 
pleted in  ten  years,  otherwise  a  forfeiture  of  the  land  grants,  and  that 
the  New  Orleans,  Yicksburg  &  Baton  Rouge  Railroad  Company  char- 
tered by  Louisiana,  should  have  the  right  to  connect  with  the  Texas 
Pacific  at  its  eastern  terminus,  ta  pass  through  public  lands  and 
have  the  same  number  of  alternate  sections  of  land  per  mile  in  the 
State  of  Louisiana,  as  were  granted  to  the  Texas  Pacific  in  the  State 
of  California. 

It  also  provided  that,  for  the  purpose  of  connecting  the  Texas 
Pacific  with  the  city  of  San  Francisco,  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad 
Company  of  California  was  authorized  (subject  to  the  laws  of  that 
State)  to  construct  a  line  of  railroad  from  a  point  at  or  near  Tehachapa 


118  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

Pass  by  way  of  Los  Angeles  to  the  Texas  Pacific  Railroail  at  or 
near  the  Colorado  River,  with  the  same  rights,  grants  and  privileges, 
and  subject  to  the  same  Hraitations,  restrictions  a^d  conditions  granted 
to  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad  Company  of  California  b\'  act  of  July 
27th,  1866. 

The  Texas  Pacific  Company,  was  first  charteretl  under  the  title  of 
the  Atlantic  &  Pacific  Company,  by  the  State  of  Xew  York  in  1S53 : 
changed  afterward  to  the  Texas  Western ;  in  1856  to  the  Southern 
Pacific,  and  by  the  act  of  Congress  approved  March  3rd,  1871,  to  tlie 
present  title.  It  acquired  the  properties  of  the  Southern  Pacific,  the 
Southern  Trans-continental,  and  the  Memphis,  El  Paso  <fe  Pacific  Rail- 
road Company.  The  Southern  Pacific  was  a  consolidation  of  the 
Vicksburg,  Shreve]x>rt  &  Texas  Company,  chartered  by  the  State 
of  Louisiana,  and  the  Southern  Pacific,  organized  under  the  laws  of 
Texas. 

The  road  from  the  east  line  of  Texas  to  Longview,  in  that  State,  a 
distance  of  forty  miles,  was  built  b\^  the  Southern  Pacific  Company ; 
the  balance  of  the  road  was  built  by  the  present  company. 

The  road  in  Louisiana,  a  distance  of  twenty  mUes,  necessary  to 
connect  with  the  above  road,  was  constructed  by  the  Yicksburg, 
Shreveport  &  Texas  Company. 

Connection  with  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad  was  made  in  the 
month  of  January,  1882,  at  a  point  523  miles  west  of  Fort  "Worth, 
and  a  through  route  from  San  Francisco  to  St.  Louis  was  effected  by 
connection  with  the  Iron  Mountain  Railroad,  of  Missouri,  in  the  same 
year. 

For  the  construction  of  the  line  from  Fort  Worth  west  523  miles, 
the  company  issued  first-mortgage  bonds,  dated  January  20th,  1880, 
and  payable  February  1st,  1930,  with  interest  at  six  per  cent,,  payable 
in  gold,  February  1st  and  August  1st  of  each  year,  at  the  rate  of  $25,000 
to  the  mile  of  completed  road, 

B\^  deed,  dated  June  21st,  1881,  the  Texas  and  Pacific  was  consoli- 
dated under  its  own  name  with  the  New  Orleans  Pacific  Railway, 
extending  from  Shreveport  to  Xew  Orleans,  a  distance  of  335  miles. 
By  the  terms  of  consolidation,  the  stockholders  of  the  New  Orleans 
Pacific  received  an  amount  of  stock  of  the  Texas  &  Pacific  equal  to 
that  held  by  themselves.  The  total  liabilities  of  the  New  Orleans 
Pacific  consisted  of  a  first-mortgage  debt   of   $20,000  per  mile;  its 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    KOOKY    MOUNTAINS.  119 

stock  was  $20,000  per  mile.  The  balance  of  net  earnings  of  the  road 
for  the  year  ending  December  31st,  1884,  was  $783,932.72. 

The  leading  spirit  in  the  construction  of  this  road  was  Thomas  A. 
Scott,  President  of  the  Pennsylvania  Kailroad  Company.  Shortly 
before  his  death  which  occurred  May  21st,  1881,  he  sold  the  control  of 
his  stock  to  the  railroad  magnate,  Jay  Gould.  The  Fidelity  Insurance 
Trust  and  S.  D.  Company  of  Philadelphia  is  mortgage  trustee  of  the 
Rio  Grande  Division  mortgage.     The  stock  authorized  was  $50,000,000. 

From  the  State  of  Texas  the  company  received  4,851,702  acres 
of  land  by  building  east  of  Fort  "Worth,  on  which  the  income  bonds 
are  a  lien,  as  also  a  third  mortgage  on  the  road  east  of  Fort  Worth. 
There  were  also  1,000  certificates  for  640,000  acres  deposited  in  trust 
for  certain  foreign  claimants.  The  lands  granted  by  act  of  Congress 
were  twenty  sections  per  mile  in  California,  and  forty  sections  per  mile 
in  the  Territories  between  Texas  and  California. 

The  Southern  Pacific  Railroad  Company  was  formed  by  the  con- 
solidation, October  12th,  1870,  of  the  following  roads,  to  wit :  Southern 
Pacific,  chartered  December  2nd,  1865;  San  Francisco  and  San  Jose, 
chartered  August  18th,  1860 ;  Santa  Clara  and  Pajaro  Yalley,  chartered 
January  2nd,  1868,  and  California  Southern,  chartered  January  22nd, 
1870. 

The  Southern  Pacific  Branch  Railroad  Company,  chartered 
December  23rd,  1872,  was  consolidated  in  this  Southern  Pacific, 
August  19th,  1873,  and  the  Los  Angeles  &  San  Pedro  Railroad  Com- 
pany, chartered  February  18th,  1868,  was  consolidated  therein  Decem- 
ber 18th,  1874,  The  total  length  of  all  these  lines  forming  the 
Southern  Pacific  Railroad,  as  now  constructed,  is  within  a  small  frac- 
tion of  998  miles.  The  road  as  completed  was  opened  to  Fort  Yuma 
on  May  5th,  1877,  a  distance  of  729  miles  from  San  Francisco. 

The  Sierra  Nevada  range  was  crossed  at  an  elevation  of  3,764  feet 
above  tidewater;  the  Sierra  Madrewas  crossed  at  Alpina,  at  2,822  feet, 
and  recrossed  at  San  Gorgonio  Pass,  2,560  feet  above  tidewater.  From 
the  California  boundary  eastwardly  the  road  was  extended  by  the 
Southern  Pacific  Railroad  Companies  of  Arizona  and  I^ew  Mexico, 
connection  being  made  by  the  latter  with  the  Atchison,  Topeka  & 
Santa  Fe  Railroad,  at  Deming,  New  Mexico,  466|^  miles  east  of  Yuma 
and  l,197i  miles  east  of  San  Francisco,  March  18th,  1881.  During  the 
same  year  the  line  was  extended  eastward  to  the  Rio  Grande  River  at 


120  ECHOES   FROM    THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

El  Paso,  eighty-eight  miles.  At  El  Paso  connection  is  made  with  the 
Mexican  Central,  completed  in  1883  to  the  City-of  Mexico,  and  with 
the  Galveston,  Harrisburg  &  San  Antonio,  forming  with  the  latter  a 
through  trans-continental  line  from  San  Francisco  to  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico  at  I^ew  Orleans. 

This  through  line,  in  which  the  Texas  &  'New  Orleans,  Louisiana 
Western,  and  Morgan's  Louisiana  &  Texas  Railroads  form  integral  parts 
was  completed  and  finally  opened  for  business  January  15th,  1883. 
On  March  1st,  1885,  it  passed  under  the  management  of  the  Southern 
Pacific  Company,  as  lessee  of  the  Southern  Pacific  Ea-ilroad  of  Cali- 
fornia, Arizona  and  New  Mexico,  and  also  of  the  Galveston,  Harris- 
burg &  San  Antonio  Railway,  the  Texas  &  New  Orleans  and  Mor- 
gan's Railroad  and  Steamship  lines. 

By  agreement  with  the  Atlantic  &  Pacific  (33d  parallel)  Rail- 
road Company,  the  Southern  Pacific  built,  during  1882  and  1883,  a 
branch  line  of  242  miles,  extending  from  Mojave  Junction  to  a  con- 
nection with  the  main  line  of  the  Atlantic  &  Pacific  Company  at  the 
crossing  of  the  Great  Colorado  River,  near  "  The  Xeedles." 

Under  the  acts  of  Congress  approved  July  27th,  1866,  and  Mapch 
3rd,  1871.  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad  Company  acquired  the  right 
of  way  (200  feet  wide)  through  the  public  lands  and  twenty  alternate 
sections  (12,800  acres)  for  each  mile  of  road  completed  and  equipped. 
These  grants  cover  a  distance  of  932  miles.  The  authorized  capital 
stock  is  $90,000,000,  of  which  $40,363,900  has  been  issued  and  is  all 
held  by  the  promoters  of  the  enterprise,  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad 
Company.  The  bonds  were  sold  to  some  extent  in  Europe.  These 
bonds  are  in  series  A,  B,  C,  D  and  E,  of  which  A  includes  $15,000,000, 
and  B,  C,  D  and  E,  each,  $5,000,000.  There  are  also  two  other  series, 
F,  of  $5,000,000,  and  G,  of  $6,000,000,  for  new  construction  as 
required.  The  series  A,  B,  C  and  D,  mature  in  1905  and  1906.  the  series 
E  in  1912.  Over  $5,000,000  of  these  bonds  are  held  in  the  Central 
Pacific  sinking  funds.  These  bonds  are  secured  by  a  mortgage  on  the 
lands,  and  as  lands  are  sold  and  the  proceeds  come  into  the  hands  of 
the  trustees,  bonds  are  purchased.  There  is  also  a  sinkmg  fund  of 
$100,000  per  year. 

In  1880  the  net  earnings  of  this  road  were  as  follows :  On  the 
northern  division  $442,765  and  $1,675,248  rental  on  southern  division; 


ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  ]21 

total  $2,118,013,  out  of  which  were  paid  $1,762,140  for  interest  and 
rental,  leaving  a  surplus  of  $355,873. 

The  road  in  California  is  in  two  divisions,  northern  and  southern. 
The  northern  division  runs  from  San  Francisco  to  Tres  Pinos  100| 
miles ;  Camadero  Junction  to  Soledad,  60J  miles,  and  leased  line,  Cas- 
torville  Junction  to  Monterey,  15  miles;  total  176  miles.  The  south- 
ern division,  Huron  via  Goshen  to  Colorado  Eiver,  529  miles;  Mojave, 
toward  the  Needles,  131  miles;  Los  Angeles  via  Wilmington  to  San 
Pedro,  25  miles ;  total  southern  division,  685  miles ;  total  Southern 
Pacific  in  California,  861  miles.  At  Goshen  the  Southern  Pacific  meets 
the  San  Joaquin  branch  of  the  Central  Pacific,  by  which  it  reaches 
San  Francisco  and  the  main  line  of  the  Central  Pacific. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  BUILDOfG  OF  THE  XORTHERX  PACIFIC- THE  FIRST  PROJECTED  ROAD  ACROSS 
THE  CONTINENT  — THE  EXPEDITION  OF  1853-JOSIAH  PERHAM'S  LABORS - 
l>RO«>SITION  TO  RAISE  ONE  HUNDRED  MILLIONS  OF  DOLLARS  BY  SUB- 
SCRIPTION—THE FIRM  OF  JAY  COOKE  &  CO. -ITS  CONNECTION  WITH 
THB  ROAD  — PLACING  OF  EIGHTY  MILLIONS  OF  BONDS  ON  THE  AMERICAN 
MARKET— SOME  METHODS  THAT  WERE  USED  IN  PLACING  THE  WAR  LOANS 
OF  THE  GOVERNMENT -THE  MEMORABLE  PANIC  OF  18T3— THE  FAILURE  OF 
JAY  COOKE  &  CO. -THE  WIDE-SPREAD  FINANCIAL  RUIN  THAT  FOLLOWED- 
HENRY  VILLARD  — THE  OREGON  TRANSPORTATION  COMPANY  — THE  FINAL 
COMPLETION  OF  THE  NORTHERN  PACIFIC  OVER  THE  ROUTE  JiARKED  OUT 
BY  THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 

Although  the  Northern  Pacific  Eailroad  was  the  first  projected 
across  the  continent,  it  proved  .the  last  to  be  completed  in  the  United 
States.  Half  a  century  ago  the  proposition  to  build  a  railroad  from 
Kew  York  City  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River  was  generally 
advocated  by  the  press,  and,  although  the  task  was  declared  to  be 
Herculean,  the  belief  was  expressed  that  eventually  the  enterprise  would 
be  accomplished.  In  1845  a  proposition  was  submitted  to  Congress 
bj'^  Asa  Whitney,  of  Xew  York,  to  construct  a  railroad  from  the  head 
of  Lake  Michigan  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River.  This  plan 
embraced  a  provision  for  a  grant  of  land,  sixty  miles  wide — thirty  on 
each  side  of  the  road  for  the  entire  distance.  A  bill  containino:  the 
foregoing  provisions  was  submitted  to  Congress,  but  failed  to  receive 
Its  sanction.  Its  projector  traversed  the  country  from  Maine  to  Louis- 
iana, addressing  many  public  meetings,  in  the  endeavor  to  mold  pub- 
lic opinion  in  its  favor,  and  induce  State  legislatures  to  pass  resolutions 
recommending  Congress  to  take  favorable  action  upon  the  bill.  In 
these  fruitless  efforts  he  expended  his  entire  fortune,  and  was  forced 
to  retire  from  the  field,  but  by  this  early  advocacy  of  the  measure 
Asa  Whitney  is  entitled  to  recognition  as  the  father  of  the  enterprise, 
which,  after  the  lapse  of  almost  half  a  century,  was  finally  accomplished 
under  the  title  of  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad. 

In  1853  an  expedition  under  the  direction  of  Isaac  L.  Stevens, 
governor  of  Washington  Territory,  and  commissioned  by  the  United 

128 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  133 

States  Government,  made  an  exploration  of  the  country  lying  between 
the  forty-seventh  and  forty-ninth  parallels  of  latitude,  to  determine  the 
practicability  of  a  route  for  a  railroad  from  the  Great  Lakes  and  the 
Upper  Mississippi  to  the  waters  of  Puget  Sound.  This  expedition  con- 
sumed three  years,  and  its  official  report  favorably  confirmed  the 
adaptability  of  the  country  to  agricultural  pursuits,  its  water  supplies 
and  its  mineral  and  timber  resources,  as  well  as  other  general  condi- 
tions necessary  for  the  support  of  a  civilized  and  industrial  population. 

Besides  establishing  the  facts  of  its  shorter  distance  between  the 
oceans  and  its  proximity  to  both  Europe  and  Asia,  it  determined  the 
route  to  be  beset  by  fewer  engineering  difficulties  than  other  proposed 
lines,  and  its  possession  of  an  abundance  of  wowd,  water  and  various 
materials  of  construction,  while  the  entire  route  was  found  to  pass 
through  broad  areas  of  arable  land,  watered  by  large  streams  and 
tributaries,  and  clothed  with  a  vegetation  indicating  the  rich  produc- 
tive capacity  of  the  soil,  with  a  climate  superior  in  healthful ness  and 
most  favorable  for  the  growth  of  the  cereal  and  vegetable  productions. 

When,  in  1862,  the  Union  and  Central  Pacific  Railwa}^  Companies 
obtained  their  charters,  an  unsuccessful  effort  was  made  to  secure  one 
likewise  for  the  northern  route.  However,  in  1804,  when  the  Union 
and  Central  Pacific  Companies  were  petitioning  Congress  for  legisla- 
tion, subordinating  the  Government  to  the  first  mortgages  of  the  two 
lines,  the  friends  of  the  measure,  supported  by  the  facts  embraced  in 
the  report  of  Governor  Stevens  and  corps  of  engineers,  successfully 
urged  their  suit,  and  Congress,  by  the  act  approved  July  2nd,  18C4, 
created  a  body  corporate  and  politic,  under  the  style  of  the  Northern 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,  with  power  to  construct  a  road  from  Lake 
Superior  to  Puget  Sound,  on  the  line  of  the  forty-fifth  parallel  of 
latitude. 

The  man  most  prominently  connected  with  this  movement  was 
Josiah  Perham,  a  citizen  of  Maine,  who  had  formerly  organized  a  com- 
pany under  a  charter  granted  by  the  legislature  of  that  State,  called 
the  People's  Pacific  Railroad.  His  success  with  Congress  was  chiefly 
attained  by  framing  a  bill  for  a  charter,  coupled  with  a  land  grant, 
but  providing  for  no  subsidy  in  bonds  or  money  from  the  Government. 
It  embraced  the  alternate  sections  of  land  for  twenty  miles  on  each 
side  of  the  line  in  the  States  and  for  forty  miles  in  tlie  Territories, 
with   an  additional  ten  miles  on  each  side,  as  an  indemnity  limit  to 


124  ECHOES   FROM   THE   EOCKT   MOUXTAIXS. 

compensate  for  lands  taken  by  settlers  inside  of  the  original  grant. 

Ferham  was  elected  president  of  the  company^.  and  for  two  years 
tried  in  vain  to  obtain  the  necessary  capital  to  construct  the  road.  The 
chief  obstacle  in  the  way  was  a  clause  in  the  charter,  which  prohibited  the 
company  from  mortgaging  the  road  or  land  grants,  or  issuing  bonds. 
Perham's  idea  was  to  build  the  road  with  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  the 
company's  stock,  of  which,  he  believed,  $100,000,000  would  be  at  once 
taken  by  popular  subscription.  The  first  directors  were  elected  December 
6th,  1S64,  and  on  the  following  day  organized  the  company'  by  the 
selection  of  its  officers,  who  unfortunately  were  not  men  of  practical 
experience.  They  proposed  to  raise  $100,000,000  by  the  subscriptions 
of  1,000,000  persons  of  one  share  of  stock  each,  at  par,  and  thus  build 
the  road.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  parties  could  not  be  found,  the 
scheme,  failed  and  the  franchise  was  sold  to  a  svndicate  of  New  Encr- 
land  capitalists  for  barely  suflBcient  to  pay  Perham's  debts.  He  did 
not  live  to  witness  the  successful  inauguration  of  the  enterprise  fcr 
which  he  had  obtained  from  Congress  a  grant  of  land  greater  in  extent 
than  many  of  the  kingdomsand  empires  of  the  Old  TTorld.  He  died  at 
Boston  earl}"^  in  1868. 

A  new  organization  was  effected  by  the  election  of  a  new  set  of 
directors,  and  J.  G.  Smith,  of  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad,  President, 
who  petitioned  Congress  for  aid  similar  to  that  granted  the  other  roads, 
by  Government  bonds.  Congress,  however,  refused  at  this  time  to 
adopt  the  proposed  legislation,  and  another  organization  was  com- 
pleted by  a  combination  of  the  best  railroad  experience,  ability  and 
wealth  in  the  country,  consisting  of  J.  Edgar  Thompson,  President, 
and  Thomas  A.  Scott,  vice-president  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad ; 
William  B.  Ogden,  president  of  the  Chicago  &  Northwestern ;  J.  G. 
Smith,  of  the  Vermont  Central ;  George  W.  Cass,  of  the  Pittsburgh 
&  Fort  Wayne ;  R.  P.  Cheney,  of  Boston,  and  William  G.  Fargo, 
of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  who  made  a  contract  with  the  eminent 
financial  firm  of  Jay  Cooke  «fe  Co.,  to  act  as  the  fiscal  agents 
of  the  Northern  Pacific.  This  organization  was  more  successful  than 
its  predecessors  in  securing  favorable  legislation  by  Congress.  An  act 
was  passed  authorizing  the  issue  of  bonds  and  changing  the  main  line 
of  the  road  so  that  it  should  run  down  the  Columbia  River  to  Portland, 
and  thence  north  to  Puget  Sound,  instead  of  crossing  the  mighty  bar- 
rier of  the  Cascade  Mountains.  By  adopting  the  same  means  to 
• 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  135 

popularize  the  bonds  of  the  corapany,  which  they  had  so  efficiently 
employed  in  selling  the  great  war  loans  of-  the  Government,  the  firm 
of  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.,  in  two  years  from  the  spring  of  1870,  placed 
80,000,000  of  the  bonds  upon  the  American  market.  "With  the 
means  thus  supplied,  the  company,  in  1870,  began  the  construction 
of  the  road,  commencing  at  Thompson's  Junction,  twenty-three  miles 
west  of  Duluth.  At  this  time  Jay  Cooke  was  engaged  in  building  a 
road  from  St.  Paul  to  Duluth,  and  the  Northern  Pacifi.c  purchased 
a  half  interest  in  the  twenty-three  miles  from  its  junction  to  Duluth, 
which  then  was  an  obscure  village  of  less  than  a  hundred  people.  It  pos- 
sessed no  harbor,  but  obtained  one  by  cutting  a  canal  across  a  long,  nar- 
row sandbank  inclosing  the  Bay  of  Superior.  "Work  was  also  begun  in  the 
same  year  on  the  extreme  western  division  of  the  road  running  from 
the  Columbia  River,  at  Kalamo  northward  to  Puget  Sound.  In  1871 
the  road  was  finished  across  Minnesota  to  the  Red  River  of  the  N'orth, 
and  by  1873  as  far  as  the  Missouri  River,  where  tlie  town  of 
Bismarck  was  laid  out.  By  the  fall  of  the  same  year  105  miles 
on  the  Pacific  side,  between  the  Columbia  River  and  Puget  Sound, 
were  completed,  and  the  terminal  city  of  Tacoma,  on  the  Sound, 
situated  in  a  dense  fir  forest,  was  also  laid  out.  During  this  period 
555  miles  of  road  were  completed  and  put  in  operation,  to  wit :  The 
Minnesota  Division  from  Thompson  Junction  to  Fargo,  230  miles; 
the  Dakota  Division,  from  Fargo  to  Bismarck,  195  miles;  of  the 
Pacific  Division  105  miles  from  Kalamo  to  Tacoma,  and  jointly  with 
the  St.  Paul  &  Dulilth  Railroad,  the  line  from  Thompson  to  Duluth, 
twenty-three  miles. 

In  September  following  occurred  one  of  the  most  memorable 
financial  convulsions  ever  witnessed  in  the  world  —  the  disastrous 
panic  of  1873.  The  great  house  of  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.  fell,  and  involved 
Tiniversal  financial  ruin.  The  result  was  a  sudden  and  enormous  con- 
traction of  values  whose  inflation  had  been  engendered  by  the  great 
war  debt  and  vast  issues  of  paper  money  by  the  Government.  The 
failure  of  Jay  Cooke  &  Co.  involved  the  speedy  bankruptcy  of 
the  Northern  Pacific,  and  two  years  were  spent  in  readjusting  the 
financial  affairs  of  the  company.  Its  mortgage  was  foreclosed,  a 
receiver  appointed  by  the  court  and  its  entire  property  sold  under  the 
decree,  and  purchased  by  a  committee  of  the  bondholders.  A  new 
organization  was  perfected,  a  new  board  of  directors  elected,  and  a  new 


126  ECHOES   FBOM  THE   BOCKY   MOUNTAIKS. 

President,  Charles  B.  Wright,  elected  September,  29th,  1875.  In  1879 
Mr.  Wright,  overcome  b\^  ill  health,  resigned  his  -office,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Frederick  Billings.  During  the  incumbency  of  Mr.  Wright, 
owing  to  the  financial  depression  of  the  country  and  continued  Indian 
hostilities,  nothing  was  accomplished  in  the  extension  of  the  road,  ex- 
cept thirty-one  miles  on  the  Pacific  coast  from  Tacoma  to  Wilkeson, 
and  a  branch  line  of  sixty -four  miles  from  Brainard  to  Sauk  Rapids, 
connecting  the  cities  of  St.  Paul  and  Minneapolis.  Important 
renewals  and  improvements  in  roadbed,  track  and  equipments,  however, 
had  been  made  on  the  operated  lines.  Through  the  revival  of  business 
in  the  country,  the  company,  in  1879,  had  so  far  recovered  its  credit  as 
to  be  able  to  borrow  money  to  resume  construction  on  an  increased 
basis.  It  commenced  to  build  from  the  Missouri  River  westward,  and 
from  the  Columbia  River,  in  Eastern  Washington  Territory,  near  the 
junction  of  the  Snake  River,  northeastwardly  toward  Lake  Pend 
d'Oreille,  in  Xorthern  Idaho.  The  company,  however,  did  not  feel 
warranted  in  attempting  the  completion  of  the  entire  road,  but  sought 
only  sufficient  means  to  construct  two  divisions,  which  it  mortgaged 
separately,  together  with  the  land  grants  accompanying  that  part  of 
the  line.  In  the  following  year,  1880,  after  Mr.  Billings  had  succeeded 
to  the  presidency,  negotiations  were  completed  with  a  syndicate  of 
bankers,  including  the  New  York  houses  of  Winslow,  Lanier  &  Co., 
Drexel,  Morgan  &  Co.,  August  Belmont  &  Co.,  and  the  London  house 
of  I.  S.  Morgan  <fe  Co.,  through  which  a  loan  of  $40,000,000  was 
secured,  thus  enabling  the  company  during  the  two  succeeding  years  to 
complete  the  road  through  Montana  and  to  close  the  gap  in  the  line 
which  then  amounted  to  over  eight  hundred  miles. 

In  the  following  year  a  very  important  change  occurred  in  the 
management  of  the  company's  affairs.  IIenr\'^  Tillard,  a  German  by 
birth,  but  who  came  to  America  at  a  very  early  age,  liad  become 
interested  in  the  raanaorement  of  railroads  in  Kansas  and  Oreg^on  as 
the  representative  of  large  German  financial  interests,  and  had 
gradually  obtained  control,  during  the  six  years  folio  wing  the  panic  of 
1873.  of  the  transportation  lines  by  rail,  river  and  sea  in  the  State  of 
Oregon.  He  had  consolidated  and  extended  these  lines  to  such  a 
degree  that  they  became  a  wonderfully  efficient  system  of  transporta- 
tion. Yillard  conceived  the  idea  to  harmonize  the  interests  and  control 
between  his  own  lines  and  the  Northern  Pacific,  so  that  the  former 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  127 

miarht  become  the  western  extension  and  feeders  of  the  latter.  In  the 
following  year,  1881,  he  organized  the  "blind  pool"  in  Kew  York, 
and  obtained  in  an  incredibly  short  space  of  time,  subscriptions  of 
money  amounting  to  more  than  eight  millons  of  dollars,  without  dis- 
closing the  use  he  intended  to  make  of  this  large  sum  of  money,  and 
without  further  security  than  his  own  personal  obligations.  With  this 
and  other  means  he  immediately  secured  a  controlling  iiiterest  in  the 
stock  of  the  Northern  Pacific,  and  was  elected  President  of  the  com- 
panj'  in  September  of  that  year.  The  road  was  now  rapidly  extended 
and  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  1883  only  300  miles  remained  to  be 
completed,  on  all  of  which  tlie  grading  had  mainly  been  done.  The 
Missouri  River,  at  Bismarck,  had  been  spanned  by  a  splendid  steel 
bridge,  and  the  work  on  the  Yellowstone  division  pressed  rapidly  to 
completion,  and  other  divisions  had  progressed  so  far  on  the  Pacific 
coast  side  as  to  give  a  continuous  line  from  Missoula,  Montana  Terri- 
tory, to  Puget  Sound,  by  way  of  the  Oregon  Railway  and  Navigation 
Company's  Railroad.  At  the  same  time,  work  on  the  Rocky  Mountain 
division,  in  Central  Montana,  was  pushed  forward,  as  rapidly  as  the 
heavy  construction  would  permit,  through  the  narrow  gorges  of  Clark's 
Fork  of  the  Columbia,  bordered  by  lofty  and  precipitous  mountains. 
Two  great  tunnels  were  bored  thrpugh  the  mountains,  one  at  Boze- 
man's  Pass  in  the  Belt  range,  and  the  other  at  Mullan's  Pass,  in  the 
main  division  uf  the  Rocky  Mountains,  the  former  3,600  and  the  latter 
3,850  feet.  The  highest  summit  passed  at  any  point  on  the  line  was  in 
the  Bozeman  Tunnel,  5,565  feet  above  sea  level.  That  at  Mullan  was 
only  seventeen  feet  less.  A  third  and  lower  range  was  crossed  between 
the  valleys  of  the  Missoula  and  the  Jocko,  in  Western  Montana,  the 
elevation  at  the  summit  being  but  3,925  feet.  The  grade  adopted  in 
crossing  these  three  ranges  was  that  prescribed  as  the  limit  by 
Congress,  116  feet  to  the  mile.  On  all  other  portions  of  the  line  the 
grade  does  not  exceed  fifty -two  feet  to  the  mile,  and  this  is  necessary  at 
but  few  points  and  for  short  distances.  Besides  the  great  steel  bridge 
at  Bismarck  across  the  Missouri,  there  is  another  spanning  the  Snake 
River,  at  Ainsworth,  Washington  Territory,  which,  however,  is  a  low 
bridge  with  a  draw.  That  at  Bismarck  is  built  so  high  above  the  river 
as  to  require  no  draw,  and  ranks  as  a  fair  exhibition  of  engineering 
among  the  railroad  bridges  of  the  world.  There  are  other  con?truc- 
tions  on  the  line  requiring  less  engineering  skill.     The  Yellowstone  is 


128  ECHOES   FROM    THE   ROCKY   MOUXTAIKS. 

crossed  three  times,  the  Upper  Missouri  once,  and  Clark's  Fork  of  the 
Columbia,  three  times,  by  Howe's  truss  bridges.  The  bridge  at  Bis- 
marck and  at  Ainsworth  are  both  built  upon  stone  piers,  with  super- 
structures of  iron  and  steel.  Other  interesting  features  of  construction 
are  the  two  long  pile  bridges  across  the  arms  of  Lake  Pend  d'Oreille, 
each  of  which  is  a  mile  long,  and  the  great  trestle  bridge  at  Marent 
Gulch  in  the  Coriacan  Defile,  which  is  226  feet  high. 

The  principal  eastern  terminus  of  the  Northern  Pacific  system  is 
at  the  twin  cities  of  St.  Paul  and  Minneapolis.  From  the  fonner,  three 
trunk  lines  connect  with  Chicago.  It  likewise  possesses  two  terminal 
lake  ports  at  the  head  of  Lake  Superior — Duluth  and  Superior.  Its 
tidewater  terminals  on  the  Pacific  are  at  Portland,  Oregon,  and  at 
Puget  Sound,  "Washington  Territory.  The  largest  ocean  steamers  and 
sailing  vessels  traverse  the  Columbia  and  Willamette  and  anchor  at 
the  wharves  of  Portland,  while  the  deep  land-locked  sea  of  Puget 
Sound  is  all  one  immense  harbor  where  the  navies  of  the  world  might 
ride  at  anchor. 

The  total  mileage  of  the  main  line  divisions  of  the  Northern 
Pacific  is  1,980  miles,  and  that  of  its  nine  branches,  674  miles,  aggre- 
gating a  grand  total  of  2,654  miles.  The  distance  by  rail  from  Port- 
land, Oregon,  to  New  York  is  3,283  miles.  The  branch  lines  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  sy^stem,  as  alread\'  stated,  were  built  by  the  Oregon 
&  Transcontinental  Company,  which  held  a  controlling  interest  in 
the  stock  of  the  Northern  Pacific  and  of  the  Oregon  Railwa}'^  and 
Navigation  Company,  and  constructed  branches  under  an  agreement 
whereby  the  stock  ownership  was  to  be  acquired  b}^  the  Northern 
Pacific  Company  after  the  bonded  debt  of  the  branches  should  be 
extinguished  by  the  operations  of  sinking  funds. 

The  Northern  Pacific  Railroad  was  built  entirely  b}^  private 
means,  with  the  exception  of  the  land  grants  from  the  Government, 
which  secured  the  payment  of  its  bonds.  Congress  refused  to  grant 
a  money  subsidy,  or  in  any  manner,  save  by  grants  of  land,  indorse 
the  permanent  success  of  the  road.  It  was  constructed  over  the 
course  marked  out  originally  by  the  hand  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  when 
he  dispatched  the  expedition,  known  as  the  Lewis  and  Clark  Expe- 
dition, to  discover  a  practical  route  for  emigration  and  traflBc  with  the 
Pacific  coast  through  our  possessions  newly  acquired  by  the  Louisiana 
purchase.     The  road  was  built  without  the  aid  of  a  Credit  Mobilier, 


iiBiiiii!ilBiLUEE:iii::!i3iiiii!iiiiiiiim^ 

THOMAS   JEFFERSON. 


1» 


ECHOES    FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  131 

and  opens  up  to  the  nation  and  the  world  most  practicably  the 
great  wheat  fields  and  mineral  deposits  of  the  vast  ]S"orthern  belt  of  our 
country.  It  was  the  third  and  last  achievement  of  the  intelligence 
and  energy  of  the  people,  in  subduing  the  wilderness  and  piercing  the 
mountains  that  divide  the  continent.  It  was  the  completion  of  one 
more  tie  to  bind  together  in  an  indissoluble  band  the  once  remote  sec- 
tions of  our  common  country.  It  creates  one  more  portage  for  the 
water-borne  commerce  plying  between  Europe  and  Asia.  It  opens 
new  fields  of  industry,  where  agriculture,  mining,  factories  and  work- 
shops will  provide  homes  and  employment  for  the  landless  and 
moneyless  millions  of  the  Old  World,  as  well  as  of  our  own  race  and 
country,  who  will  seek  its  broad  domain  and  reap  wealth  and  pros- 
perity without  the  aid  of  capital.  It  will  assist  in  creating  new  States, 
whose  political  and  geographical  subdivisions  will  add  riches  and 
power  to  the  nation,  and  strength  and  security  to  the  Union. 

The  electric  spark  that  repeated  in  the  marts  of  Wall  street  the 
blows  upon  the  golden  spike  in  the  wilderness  by  the  waters  of 
distant  Pend  d'Oreille,  ticked  its  cabalistic  speech  for  unborn  genera- 
tions. It  told  of  a  wave  of  golden  wealth  that  should  roll  from  mountain 
slope  to  land-locked  city,  and  thence  to  the  ocean's  rim  to  fill  the  fleets 
of  commerce  from  earth's  remotest  points,  bearing  the  Indus  of  our 
mines,  the  product  of  our  soil  and  the  labor  of  our  sons,  to  every  land 
and  people,  whose  shores  are  watered  by  the  tides  of  ocean.  • 


CHAPTER  Till. 

THB  ROBBEBS  OF  THE  OVERLAXD  ROUTES-MT  MISSION  FROM  THE  GOVERXMEXT 
TO  CAPTURE  AXD  PROSECUTE  THE  DEPREDATORS  -SKETCH  OF  COUNTRY— 
EXCmXG  SCENES -DESCRIPTION  OF  FRONTIER  TOWNS— THE  VAST  ARMY  OF 
MEN  THAT  WERE  SCATTERED  OVER  THE  COUNTRY  AFTER  THE  CLOSE  OF 
THE  WAR  — MURDERS  AND  ASSASSINATIONS  -  DEPREDATIONS  UPON  OVER- 
LAND MAIL  BY  ORGANIZED  BANDS  OF  MAIL  ROBBERS -RAILROAD  TOWNS 
BY  NIGHT  — PUNISHMENT  OF  THE  ROBBERS  —  A  DESPERADO'S  INNOCENT 
AMUSEMENT  —  COMMISSIONED  BY  THE  GOVERNMENT  — JOURN*EY  TO  THE 
FAR  WEST.  VIA  NEW  YORK.  NIAGARA  ASD  ST.  LOUIS  — THE  HUDSON,  THE 
RHINE  OF  AMERICA— WEST  POINT— OTHER  CITIES. 

When  the  vast  transcontinental  lines  of  railroad  on  both  sides  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains  were  pushing  their  way  toward  the  "  Great 
American  Desert."  the  war  between  the  sections  had  closed.  Its  bat- 
tles, campaigns,  marches,  assaults,  repulses,  victories  and  defeats  had 
ceased  forever,  and  the  mighty  armies  that  had  for  four  years  been 
grinding  each  other  to  pieces  in  a  gory  maelstrom,  had  melted  into 
the  peaceful  paths  of  civic  life.  The  cordons  were  broken,  Death's 
black  engines  were  silent  —  the  sword  was  returned  upon  the  wall  to 
rust.  The  nation  became  engaged  in  the  divine  work  of  healing  wars 
wounds  and  cementing  within  the  Union  the  strained  and  broken 
brotherhoods. 

But  while  the  vast  armies  of  each  section  swiftly  disappeared 
within  the  grooves  and  crevices  of  home  societj-,  resting  upon  its 
bosom  from  the  aches  and  pains  of  the  stem  contest  —  there  were  on 
both  sides  of  the  Potomac  turbulent  spirits,  who  could  not  be  appeased 
by  the  smiles  and  offerings  of  the  God  of  Peace.  Their  ]5assions  had 
been  aroused  b}'^  the  turbulent  scenes  through  which  they  had  passed, 
and  demanded  a  protracted  stimulus.  Some  found  it  on  the  table-lands 
of  Mexico,  some  in  the  armies  of  Egypt,  and  some  amid  the  wUd  scenes 
and  adventures  of  a  mining  camp.  These  men,  however,  were  imbued 
with  sentiments  of  honor ;  they  were  not  outlaws,  but  good  citizens. 

Another  class,  of  lower  instincts  and  brutal  desires,  drawn 
together  by  the  affinities  of  their  depraved  natures,  became  a  band  of 
*' land  pirates,"  marauding  the  country  in  various  sections,  robbing 

133 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  133 

banks,  plundering  homes  and  destroying  trains  upon  railroads.  These 
bandits  hesitated  not  at  murder!  They  loved  the  sight  of  blood! 
They  became  a  scourge,  and  every  honest  man's  hand  was  lifted  against 
them.  They  traversed  the  Southwest,  spreading  terror  by  their  sud- 
den raids,  their  ferocity,  brutality  and  the  dark  crimes  that  followed 
their  footsteps. 

From  the  Southwest  to  the  Northwest  they  transferred  a  part  of 
their  band  and  operations,  and  reenacted  their  dark  deeds  in  the 
quiet  vales  of  Minnesota,  unused  to  such  scenes  since  the  tide  of 
civilization  had  driven  back  the  barbarous  savage. 

I  do  not  believe  that  these  men,  with  rare  exceptions,  had  borne 
an  honorable  part  in  the  battles  for  and  against  the  Union.  I  do  not 
believe  they  had  carried  the  honorable  arms  of  warfare.  I  believe 
them  to  have  been  the  bummers  and  camp-followers  of  the  army,  the 
scurrilous  off-scourings  of  the  earth,  who  had,  in  some  manner,  found 
a  lodgment  within  the  lines  of  honorable  men,  and  profited  by  the 
contact. 

Thence  a  multitude,  apparently  more  degraded  than  all  others, 
sought  a  field  of  desperate  and  brutal  adventure  on  the  line  of  the 
Union  Pacific  Railroad.  It  was  the  custom  of  the  builders  of  that 
road  to  establish  at  various  intervals  according  to  the  character  of 
the  locations,  certain  halting  places  for  all  trains  (save  those  used 
in  the  construction  of  the  road),  which  were  designated  as  the 
termini.  Instantly,  upon  such  a  location  being  made  known,  the 
city  on  wheels  at  the  former  terminus  would  move  forward  at  the 
word  of  command.  Sometimes  large  fortunes  were  made  by  those 
in  authority,  whose  peculiar  privilege  it  was  to  determine  and  lay  out 
the  site  of  a  road  terminus  and  subdivide  it  into  building  lots.  I  have 
known  such  lots  to  sell  for  cash  all  the  way  from  $500  to  $5,000, 
according  to  the  eligibility  of  their  location  for  certain  classes  of 
business  of  unique  and  peculiar  character.  Especially  was  this  so,  and 
proportionately  greater  the  harvest  in  disposing  of  all  kinds  of 
building  lots,  when  it  was  established  that  the  halting  place  would  be 
that  of  a  "  winter  terminus  "  ;  for  such  a  location  meant  also  a  vast 
harvest  for  all  who  should  secure  an  early  business  foothold  on  the 
embryo  city,  whose  life  naturally  would  be  much  longer  than  that  of  a 
summer  city.  Here,  as  if  by  magic,  would  arise  in  the  wilderness 
a  city  of  many  thousands  of  people  of  all  classes  and  conditions,  living, 


134  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

mostly,  in  wooden  houses  brought  thither  on  Avheels.  Some,  however, 
were  made  of  adobes,  or  sun-dried  bricks,  and  others  were  constructed 
of  tents  and  logs,  hauled  from  distant  mountain  heights,  where 
grew  the  cedar,  cypress  and  lofty  pine. 

Hotels  for  travelers  would  spring  into  existence  in  a  day;  a  bank 
and  an  opera  house  would  rise  simultaneously,  side  by  side;  stores 
and  out-fitting  estaolishments  of  every  variety  would  line  the  main 
streets  with  their  quaint  signs  and  emblems  of  trade.  Mechanics 
and  artisans  would  pour  in  from  other  parts  of  the  road,  and  with 
them  would  come  the  lawyer  and  the  doctor,  both  great  healing 
mediums  with  peculiar  methods.  The  morning's  dawn  would  be 
greeted  with  the  daily  newspaper,  the  first  to  herald  the  name 
and  wondrous  fame  of  the  new  town  and  winter  terminus;  and 
night's  blackness  would  be  dispelled  by  flaming  colors,  proceeding 
from  saloon  and  dance  house,  where  men  and  women  (once  guileless 
little  girls,  who  might  have  been  angels  but  for  the  tempter)  stood 
within  this  vestibule  of  heU,  drank  the  fiery  liquids,  danced  to  the 
wheezing  tune  of  the  "  hurdy  gurdy,"  sang  their  obscene  songs  and 
laughed  merrily  at  the  ribald  jest.  Yerily,  they  were  of  their  day 
and  generation !  They  were  a  part  of  the  rude  civilization  of  wild 
frontier  life,  which  paved  the  way  for  the  purer  and  gentler  influences, 
that  followed  to  mold  the  morals  of  the  race  that  peopled  the 
cities  of  the  "  wilderness." 

In  addition  to  the  classes  of  population  above  enumerated,  there 
would  appear  at  times,  frequently  in  large  force,  the  bandit  order 
previously  mentioned.  The  town,  hitherto  peaceable  for  a  Western 
frontier  town,  would  now  be  converted  into  a  pandemonium  through 
their  bloody  orgies.  Life  was  held  of  little  value.  Men  were  murdered 
for  the  possession  of  50  cents.  At  one  of  these  towns,  in  the  Bear 
River  range  of  mountains,  a  barber  was  killed  in  broad  daj^Ught 
for  19  cents.  Men,  who  were  at  work  upon  the  railroad,  having  been 
paid  their  month's  wages,  would  be  waylaid  and  murdered  ere 
reaching  the  town  half  a  mile  distant.  Sometimes  buildings  would  be 
burned  and  valuable  lives  would  be  lost,  when  resisting  the  efforts  of 
these  lawless  pirates  to  "  paint  the  town  red,"  as  was  their  favorite 
expression  when  engaged  in  making  such  a  raid. 

The  overflow  of  this  class  penetrated  the  mountains  beyond  the 
line  of  completed  railway,  robbed  the  mail   stages  and  sometimes 


ECHOES   FROM  THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  135 

killed  the  drivers  and  passengers.  They  likewise  delighted  in  ripping 
the  mail  bags  and  destroying  their  contents  and  scattering  the  remains 
along  the  road. 

Sometimes  the  better  class  of  people,  thoroughly  aroused  by  such 
brutal  atrocities,  would  inflict  swift  vengeance  upon  the  lawless  bandits 
who  raided  their  towns.  Among  others  I  recall  a  most  signal  instance 
of  swift  retribution.  A  band  of  such  robbers  infested  a  young  town 
on  the  first  mountain  grade  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railway,  now  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  locations  along  its  whole  line.  At  that  period  it 
was  but  a  city  of  tents,  as  it  had  been  the  terminus  of  the  road  for  a 
short  time  under  a  summer  solstice. 

Upon  a  warm  July  day  of  1868  one  of  these  desperadoes  entered  the 
open  tent  in  which  a  saloon  was  kept  and  called  for  a  drink  of  "  best " 
whisky.  The  bar-keeper,  to  whom  the  man  was  an  entire  stranger, 
placed  the  bottle  containing  the  liquid,  together  with  a  glass,  before  him 
on  the  bar.  The  man  filled  the  glass  tw^o-thirds  full  of  the  fiery  bever- 
age, passed  it  beneath  his  nose,  as  if  to  test  its  excellency  by  its  aroma, 
and  then,  at  a  single  draught,  swallowed  the  contents. 

He  was  noticed  by  the  bystanders  to  be  a  very  quiet  sort  of  a  man 
in  both  manner  and  speech.  Smacking  his  lips  he-remarked,  "This 
is  fine  liquor  ?  "  "  Yes,"  replied  the  bar-keeper  earnestly,  "it  ought  to 
be;  it  cost  us  ten  dollars  per  gallon  landed  here  !  "  "  "Well,  ten  dollars 
a  gallon  is  a  good  price!  "  "  Yes,  it  is,"  said  the  bar-keeper,  standing 
in  an  expectant  attitude  to  receive  the  customary  price  for  such  an 
article. 

"  See  here,  bar-keep ! "  said  the  stranger,  "  I  have  been  out  of  luck 
for  four  days,  and  I  think  I'll  just  kill  you  afnd  see  if  it  won't  change 
my  luck  after  a  fashion."  The  bar-keeper  smiled  at  what  he  presumed 
pleasantry  of  speech,  but  the  stranger  immediately  whipped  out  a 
revolver  and  shot  the  peaceful  bar-keeper  dead,  as  he  stood  behind  his 
bar  still  smiling  with  the  others  at  what  he  deemed  the  stranger's 
jest. 

Well,  it  did  change  his  luck !  The  citizens,  exasperated  beyond 
measure  at  the  barbarous  murder,  rallied  in  force  and  hung  the  desper- 
ado within  twenty  minutes  from  the  commission  of  the  murder. 
Then,  giving  his  companions  thirty  minutes  to  leave  the  town,  bag  and 
baggage,  they  instantly  proceeded  to  make  ready  for  the  hanging  of 
any  and  all  that  remained  there  a  minute  beyond  the  allotted  time. 


136 


ECHOES     FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


It  was  quite  a  sight  to  behold  the  robber  hurrying  his  cayus  swiftly  on 
every  road  save  in  the  direction  of  the  town. 

It  was  during  the  adminstration  of  President  Andrew  Johnson  that 
the  greater  part  of  the  first  overland  railroad  was  constructed  and 
became  a  United  States  mail  route  in  accordance  with  its  charter. 
It  was,  therefore,  during  that  period  that  most  of  the  outrages  were 
peq>etrated,  which  have  become  historical  in  connection  with  the 
building  of  that  great  line  of  intercommunication. 

The  passage  of  these  robbers  from  point  to  point  on  the  line  of 
their  depredations  upon  the  mail  service  was  abrupt,  silent  and  rapid. 


"JUST  FOR  LUCK." 

They  would  cross  the  line  of  jurisdiction  of  one  Territory  to  another, 
and  having  committed  a  crime  would  move  rapidly  on,  and  in  a  few 
hours  be  lost  forever  to  view,  while  the  remains  of  their  treacherous 
work  would  be  visible  to  the  next  party  of  travelers,  on  the  next  stage 
coach  traversing  the  road. 

It  was  the  object  of  the  Grovernment  to  capture,  prosecute  and 
punish  these  desperate  marauders,  and  re-establish  the  safety  and 
security  of  the  Overland  Mail  Service.     Instructions  had  been  issued 


ECHOES  from:  the  rocky  mountains.  137 

by  the  department  of  justice  at  Washington  to  the  United  States 
district  attorneys  and  marshals  of  Territories  to  assist  the  postoffice 
department  in  the  performance  of  this  work  to  the  full  extent  of  their 
power.  However,  from  the  causes  above  enumerated,  their  efforts  in 
most  cases  proved  futile.  The  lawful  authority  of  these  officers  ceased 
with  their  Territorial  limits.  As  their  duties,  independent  of  such 
labor,  were  unusually  severe  and  ofttimes  dangerous,  it  was  not  to  be 
presumed  they  were  anxious  to  invade  the  jurisdiction  of  another  offi- 
cer, even  with  the  hope  of  capturing  and  punishing  a  desperate  mail 
robber.  And  so  it  became  necessary  that  some  one  should  give  his 
whole  time  and  attention  to  this  matter  with  any  hope  of  success.  I  was 
gratified,  as  a  young  lawyer  who  had  seen  some  army  life,  when 
informed  that  I  had  been  chosen  for  the  work.  Of  course  1  knew  that 
a  certain  degree  of  hardship  would  be  connected  with  the  service,  but 
what  was  that  to  a  young  man  full  of  hope,  life  and  ambition,  who 
had  frequently  enjoyed  a  refreshing  sleep  in  a  pool  of  water  and 
grown  fat  upon  "  hard-tack  and  salt  junk  ? "  I  was  not,  therefore, 
averse  to  enter  upon  what  might  prove  to  be  perilous  service  in  a 
country  of  which  I  had  read  so  much,  and  which  to  my  vivid  imagin- 
ation had  been  pictured  as  a  land  of  knight-errantry,  in  the  midst  of 
nature's  most  majestic  and  marvelous  works. 

I  must  confess,  however,  that  ere  my  departure  from  the  seat  of 
Government  my  ardor  was  somewhat  dampened  when  one  day,  upon 
visiting  the  postoffice  department  for  instructions,  I  beheld  a  remnant 
of  the  bloody  clothing  of  a  special  agent  who  had  just  been  mur- 
dered by  the  Indians,  and  a  portion  of  a  mail  sack,  with  pieces  of  par- 
tially destroyed  letters  plainly  marked  by  the  bloody  fingers  of  the 
savages,  which  had  been  gathered  and  returned  to  the  department, 
and  viewed  with  sad  interest  by  many  of  his  friends. 

I  shall  never  forget  the  bright  September  morning  more  than 
twenty  years  ago,  that,  bidding  my  friends  good-bye,  I  set  out  upon 
my  journey  to  the  far  West.  With  the  instructions  of  the  depart- 
ment in  my  pocket,  I  stepped  aboard  the  train  for  New  York  City,  to 
obtain  at  the  headquarters  of  the  great  Overland  Mail  Company,  the 
necessary  credentials  that  would  enable  me  to  pass  over  their  lines  in 
accordance  with  their  contract  for  transporting  the  overland  mails. 

My  readers  will  pardon  me  for  indulging  in  certain  retrospections 
and  descriptions  of  events  and  objects  of  interest  that  impressed 


138  ECHOES   FUOM  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAIXS. 

themselves  upon  me  while  pursuing  my  way  toward  the  field  of  my  future 
labors.  They  may  recall  to  them,  as  they  now  recall  to  rae,  many 
friends  and  scenes  I  separated  from  with  regret;  and  if  they  furnish 
as  much  interest  to  them  as  they  did  to  me,  I  am  sure  they  will  not 
regret  that  I  have  lingered  by  the  wayside  to  briefly  tell  the  story  of 
my  journey  in  the  East  before  that  in  the  "West. 

I  had  frequently  visited  New  York  City,  but  never  did  I  gaze 
upon  its  salient  jwints  xrith  such  a  critical  eye  as  upon  this  occasion. 
Hitherto  it  had  been  to  my  mind  the  vast  metrojwlitan  city  of  the 
Union,  with  its  transatlantic  trade  and  commerce  with  all  the  mari- 
time nations  of  Europe,  enriching  not  only  its  own  vast  population  but 
the  great  country  itself.  But  now  I  was  going  to  view  the  marvelous 
cities  upon  the  other  border  of  the  continent,  where  the  peaceful  waves 
of  the  placid  ocean  roil  up  to  the  "  Golden  Gates  of  the  Sea,"  and  it 
was  with  a  more  analytical  and  thoughtful  e3'e  that  I  now  gazed  upon 
its  wonders. 

I  had  frequently  passed  by  "  Old  Trinity "  church  and  peered 
momentarily  through  its  iron  guards  upon  the  time-worn  tombstones 
of  its  ancient  dead.  This,  however,  always  hapjDened  as  I  was  swept 
along  in  the  vast  life-current  that  moved  swiftly  through  its  principal 
artery.  Hitherto  I  had  never  lingered  long  enough  to  read  the 
inscriptions  upon  those  marble  memorials  of  the  moldering  Stuvves- 
ants  and  other  famous  burghers  who  had,  in  the  bygone  century,  laid 
the  foundations  of  all  this  material  splendor.  But  now  I  was  fascin- 
ated by  the  mute  appeal  that  seemed  to  come  forth  from  these  vener- 
able tombs  of  a  former  age — an  appeal  to  the  waves  of  trade  and 
barter  and  sale  and  the  mighty  millions  of  exchange  that  daily  rolled 
up  to  the  verge  of  those  quiet  mounds  from  the  great  mart  spread 
below — not  to  break  over  the  barriers  and  wash  them  away  forever  ! 
Indeed,  "  Old  Trinity  "  itself  seemed  to  stand  sentinel  over  its  long- 
sleeping  dead — its  gilded  spire,  an  uplifted  arm  def\"ing  the  rude 
waves'  approach ! 

I  remember  as  a  small  boy  at  school  the  injunction  of  the  school- 
master, that  when  we  were  men  grown  and  possessed  the  grand  oppor- 
tunity of  sailing  upon  the  bosom  of  the  Hudson,  "  the  most  beautiful 
sheet  of  water  in  the  world,  with  Its  scenery,"  as  he  recalled  it,  never 
to  forgo  the  glad  privilege.  I  had  also  read  in  Thomas  Jefferson's 
Notes  on  Virginia,  where  the  great  man,  whom  patriotic  tradition 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY   3I0UNTAIXS.  139 

declares  to  be  the  '•  father  of  freedom  " — he  who,  it  is  said,  drafted  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  created  a  fire-cracker  holiday  for 
every  boy  in  the  land,  affirms  that  to  view  the  grandeur  of  the  scenery 
about  the  region  of  Harper's  Ferry,  the  wild  gorge  at  tlie  confluence 
of  the  Shenandoah  with  the  Potomac,  where  the  latter  passes  through 
Blue  Ridge  of  the  AUeghanies,  was  worthy  a  visit  across  the  Atlantic, 
in  those  days  of  slow  sailing  ships. 

So  I  visited  this  spot  at  the  earliest  opportunity  amid  the  shot  and 
shell  of  war,  and  beheld  the  site  of  the  Government  foundry,  arsenal 
and  armory,  which  were  destroyed  and  abandoned  by  the  United  States 
troops  at  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War,  and  about  which  the  John 
Brown  raid  of  1859  forms  an  exciting  episode  of  ante-helium  history, 
and  surely  'twas  grandly  repaid  by  the  view  of  magnificent  scenery 
that  greets  the  eye  of  the  tourist  and  traveler.  I  therefore  determined, 
likewise,  to  follow  the  schoolmaster's  advice  and  sail  upon  the  bosom 
of  this  beautiful  stream,  "  the  Rhine  of  America,"  rendered  classic  by 
the  pen  of  America's  sweetest  historian,  as  well  as  by  the  stirring 
incidents  upon  its  banks  during  the  nation's  dark  travail  for  independ- 
ence. 

I  did  not  see  the  ghastly  gibbet  upon  which  the  unfortunate  Andre 
perished;  nor  the  British  sloop-of-war  Vulture  in  which  the  traitor 
Arnold  escaped  after  his  well-nigh  successful  attempt  to  deliver 
up  to  his  country's  enemies  the  key  of  the  stronghold  ;  nor  any 
of  the  old  spirits  who  played  such  a  majestic  part  in  the  drama  of  the 
Revolution — they  had  passed,  one  and  all,  friend  and  foe,  chief  and 
subaltern,  betrayer  and  betrayed,  into  the  land  of  dreams,  into  the 
world  of  mystic  forms  and  shadows.  But  I  saw,  passing  in  panoramic, 
life-drama  review,  the  grand  scenery  which  had  warmed  the  heart  and 
quickened  the  imagination  of  Washington  Irving  as  well  as  the  old 
schoolmaster  of  my  hoyhood  days,  who,  having  once  lived  upon  its 
banks,  loved  to  tell  his  pupils  of  its  glory  and  historic  grandeur. 

I  stepped  aboard  one  of  the  line  of  fine  steamers  that  ply  between 
New  York  City  and  Albany,  and  spent  a  day  of  sight-seeing  and  weird 
romance  long  to  be  remembered.  As  the  steamer  sailed  forth  upon 
this  beautiful  stream,  I  beheld  in  the  east  the  heights  of  Fort  Wash- 
ington and  the  village  of  In  wood  on  the  upper  shore  of  Manhattan 
Island  ;  Spuyten-Duyvel  Creek  flowing  into  the  Harlem,  and  separat- 
ing Manhattan  from  the  main  land  ;   then  the  village  of  Riverdale, 


140  ECHOES   FROM   THE   KOCKY   MOUXTAIJfS. 

where  now  the  great  building  of  Mt.  St.  Vincent,  the  mother-house  of 
the  Sisters  of  Charity-,  looms  up — the  central  building  being  the 
granite  castle  erected  by^  Edwin  Forrest,  and  intended  for  his  own 
dwelling ;  and  the  beautiful  suburban  citA^  of  Yonkers,  with  its 
elegant  mansions  and  |iarks,  one  of  the  fairest  scenes  on  the  peaceful 
highway. 

On  the  west  I  saw  the  Palisades,  extending  like  an  unbroken  wall 
from  250  to  600  feet  high,  from  Hoboken  to  Dobbs'  Ferr3\  On  the 
east  shore  again,  where  the  river  is  the  widest,  I  saw  Irvington,  and 
Sunnyside,  the  home  of  Washington  Irving,  and  Tarrytown,  of  Hevo- 
lutionary  memory,  with  Sleepy  Hollow  close  by.  1  expected  everv^ 
moment  to  see  old  Rip  Van  Winkle  walk  down  to  the  river  s  etlge  and 


ox  THE  HUDSOX.    VIEW  FROM  WEST  POIXT. 

hail  our  passing  boat  to  take  passage  for  another  world  on  the  strange 
craft  with  breath  of  steam  and  lungs  of  flame.  But,  alas!  Rip  was 
dead,  und  his  frau  und  his  oldt  tog,  Schneider! 

Beyond  was  the  beautiful  village  of  Sing  Sing,  from  whose  midst 
rose  conspicuously  the  dark  walls  of  the  State  penitentiary.  Alas,  but 
few  songs  of  joy  are  sung  there !  It  seems  to  me  that  Miriam's  song 
might  be  a  glad  one  to  some,  at  least,  of  its  inmates.  All  along  this 
part  of  the  river  were  the  palatial  dwellings  of  merchant  princes  and 
other  rich  ^New  Yorkers,  who  dwell  in  summer  u^wn  the  banks  of  this 


ECHOES   FEOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUN'TAINS.  141 

majestic  stream.  Beyond  Haverstraw  Bay  the  Highlands  boldly  loom 
up,  but  the  river  narrows  again  after  leaving  Peekskill,  and,  winding 
first  to  the  northeast  and  then  to  the  southwest,  leads  us  past  Forts 
Clinton  and  Montgomery,  and  around  West  Point,  the  picturesque 
seat  of  the  nation's  school  of  war,  thence  by  Cornwall  and  Newberg 
on  the  west  and  the  city  of  Poughkeepsie  on  the  east,  and  thence  past 
innumerable  towns,  cities  and  villages,  which  dot  its  shores  all  the  way 
.  to  Albany. 

At  this  historic  town,  after  one  of  the  most  delightful  days  I  had 
ever  enjoyed,  we  registered  at  the  Delavan,  to  start  again  in  the  morn- 
ing for  the  majesty  of  nature  itself  in  the  overflow  of  Niagara.  The 
State  legislature  was  in  session,  and  of  course  there  were  many  politi- 
cians and  notables  present  on  business  for  the  State  or  their  local  com- 
munities, or  their  own  personal  ends. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  GLIMPSE  OF  HOHACE  GREELEY  AT  ALBANY  -  NIAGARA  DESCRIBED  —  FROM  THE 
FALLS  TO  CHICAGO  — ST.  LOUIS— TURKISH  BATH  IN  THE  TOP  ROOM  OF  THE 
SOUTHERN  HOTEL. 

Among  those  at  this  hostelry,  and  towering  above  them  all,  not 
less  in  the  kingly  majesty  of  his  form  than  in  the  purity  of  his  character, 
was  that  silver-haired  editor,  who,  a  few  years  later,  was  doomed  to 
close  a  long  and  eventful  life  of  wonderful  journalistic  and  political 
activity  in  the  throes  of  a  mental  overthrow,  and  lay  down  his  life 
amid  the  despair  of  a  heartless  ingratitude  and  the  false  accusations  of 
of  old  time  friends,  I  saw  before  me  a  renowned  character,  who  had 
traveled  over  the  same  wild  frontier  lands  whose  soil  my  own  feet  were 
soon  to  press,  and  who  had  been  immortalized  by  his  famous  Cal- 
ifornia ride  in  the  coach  driven  by  Hank  Monk,  the  veteran  stage 
driver  and  Indian  fighter.  For  the  first  time  in  my  life  I  was  able  to 
insj^ect  the  personal  appearance  of  Horace  Greeley,  at  short  range.  I 
stood  within  three  paces  of  the  famous  political  controversialist  and 
reformer,  and  eagerly  scanned  each  feature.  Of  powerful  physique,  in 
loose  fitting  clothes,  with  the  inevitable  white  hat  and  the  side  pockets 
of  his  coat  stuffed  full  of  newspapers,  he  stood,  the  center  of  observa- 
tion and  attention,  his  kindly  face  beaming  with  intelligence  and  good 
nature.  The  man,  who  had  by  his  own  energy  and  labor  founded  the 
New  York  Tribune,  and  by  his  genius  and  ability  made  it  the  most 
powerful  advocate  of  Republican  principals ;  whose  world-wide  fame 
as  a  reformer  was  based  upon  the  univei'sal  belief  that  every  form  of 
political  and  social  activity  to  which  he  gave  his  support  was  based 
upon  a  high  moral  purpose ;  the  man  who,  after  years  of  denuncia- 
tion of  the  institution  of  slavery  at  the  South,  when  the  first  tocsin  of 
war  was  sounded  between  the  sections,  and  the  South  declared  its 
purpose  to  secede  from  the  Federal  Union,  frankly  avowed  his  willing- 
ness for  a  State  to  withdraw  from  the  Union  if,  after  a  full  and  free 
discussion,  a  majority  of  its  people  should  so  declare ;  the  man  who 
after  the  war  began  had  given  its  prosecution  a  vigorous  supjwrt,  and 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  143 

becoming  discouraged  in  the  hope  of  restoring  the  Union  by  force  had, 
with  the  consent  of  President  Lincoln,  gone  to  Canada,  in  1864,  to  hold 
a  fruitless  conference  on  the  subject  of  peace  with  George  N.  Sanders, 
Jacob  Thompson  and  Beverly  Tucker;  the  man  who  at  the  close  of 
the  war  advocated  the  doctrine  of  universal  amnesty  and  suffrage; 
who  declared  that  the  prolonged  imprisonment  of  Jefferson  Davis, 
without  indictment  or  trial  for  any  offense,  was  a  palpable  infraction 
of  the  sixth  amendment  to  the  Constitution,  relating  to  the  speedy 
and  public  trial  of  the  accused  by  an  impartial  jury  of  the  State  and 
district  wherein  the  crime  was  committed,  and  that  the  Government 
was  bound  to  either  try  or  release  him,  and  who  joined  with  Gerrit 
Smith  and  others  in  signing  the  bail  bond  of  Jefferson  Davis,  whereby 
he  and  they  became  responsible  to  the  Government  for  his  appearance 
to  answer  any  indictment  that  might  be  found  against  him;  the  man 
who  afterward  became  the  candidate  of  the  Liberal  Republicans  and 
th.e  Democratic  party  on  a  platform  of  equality  of  all  races  before  the 
law  —  universal  suffrage,  the  removal  of  political  disabilities,  universal 
amnesty,  local  self-government  and  protection  of  the  people  against  the 
encroachments  of  centralized  power ;  and  finally,  the  man  who  died 
of  a  broken  heart  at  the  cruel  impeachment  of  his  integrity  by  old 
friends,  who  accused  him  of  throwing  away  his  principals  and  entering 
into  a  foul  conspiracy  to  turn  over  the  Government  to  the  control  of 
the  men  who  had  instigated  the  Rebellion.  I  saw  before  me  the  man  who 
had  written  his  own  epitaph  when  he  wrote  those  memorable  lines, 
"Fame  is  a  vapor,  popularity  an  accident,  riches  take  wings,  the  only 
earthly  certainty  is  oblivion,  no  man  can  foresee  what  a  day  may  bring 
forth,  while  those  who  cheer  to-day  will  curse  to-morrow." 

With  the  dawn  of  the  morning  we  flew  on  to  Magara.  I  could 
not  content  myself  to  journey  to  that  remote  section  of  our  country — 
the  Switzerland  of  America — with  its  deep  chasms,  its  lofty  cascades  and 
mighty  cataracts,  without  first  viewing  this  vast  wonder  of  the  world, 
where  the  waters  of  all  the  great  chain  of  lakes,  but  Ontario,  are 
compressed  below  the  falls  into  a  channel  400  feet  wide,  and,  rush- 
ing in  wildest  commotion,  struggling  to  escape  from  their  narrow 
roadway,  dash  madly  along  with  a  descent  of  twenty-five  feet  to  the 
mile.  Here  the  bewildering  scene  greets  the  eye,  of  waters  piled  on 
waters,  rolling  ever  on  in  terrible  turmoil,  with  a  depth  almost  a 
hundred  feet,  and  a  velocity  of  twenty -seven  miles  per  hour,   carrying 


144  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

into  the  whirlpool  below,  at  the  same  velocity  of  speed,  over  100,000,- 
000  tons  of  water.  These  figures  are  derived  from  the  United  States 
survey,  and  are  as  near  perfection  as  absolute  care  in  estimation  can 
make  them.  To  obtain  an  outlet  the  great  mass  labors  and  surges 
and  writhes  in  aqueous  agony,  until  it  is  piled  up  in  mid-stream  to  the 
height  of  thirty  or  forty  feet  above  the  shores. 

Kow  crossing  over  from  the  American  side  from  this  vast  immen- 
sity of  a  boiling,  seething  cauldron  of  an  infl^amed  overflow  of  mad- 
dened waters,  we  turn  to  the  savage  grandeur  of  its  cause.  All  that 
is  here  described  is  far  below  the  imperial  majesty  of  the  falls  them- 
selves that  produce  the  boihng  overthrow.  The  narrowing  of  the 
stream  Niagara,  into  which  flows  first  all  the  waters  of  the  lakes,  save 
Ontario,  and  the  sudden  descent  in  the  channel,  which  is  about  sixty 
feet  in  the  mile  above  the  falls,  produces  the  swift  currents  called  the 
Rapids,  in  which  the  river,  notwithstanding  its  great  depth,  is  per- 
petually white  with  foam.  This  continues  for  a  mile  and  a  half,  until 
the  vast  body  pours  over  the  precipice  in  two  mighty  falls,  one  600 
y^ards  wide  and  154  feet  high,  the  other  220  yards  wide  and  164  feet 
high.  The  water  is  so  deep  that  it  retains  its  beautiful  green  color  for 
a  long  distance  below  the  falls,  and  the  gorgeous  rainbow  that  ever 
shines  through  the  mist  of  the  o'er-toppled  waters,  lends  a  sacred  beauty 
to  the  awful  majesty  of  the  scene. 

The  reader  will  be  called  upon,  in  the  course  of  this  work,  to  com- 
pare the  grandeur  of  these  falls  with  those  that  for  thousands  of  years 
alone  broke  the  silence  of  the  remote  West.  We  crossed  over  to  the 
Canada  side  by  way  of  the  Suspension  Bridge  and  stood  on  the  shelv- 
ing rock  (since  blown  into  the  river)  while  my  photograph  was  taken, 
descending  thence  beneath  the  overflowing  waters,  far  down  at  their 
base,  where  the  roar  deafens  and  the  mist  blinds  3'ou.  Here  you 
gather  more  fully  than  above,  the  intensitv  of  their  awful  majesty. 
After  viewing  the  Clifton  House  and  all  other  objects  of  interest  on  the 
Canada  side  of  this  great  historical  stream,  just  as  the  golden  sunset 
poured  its  irridescent  flames  upon  the  waters,  rendering  them  more 
gorgeous  in  their  new  robes,  we  entered  our  carriage  to  return  to  the 
American  side.  As  our  wheels  were  once  more  about  to  roll  from  the 
bridge  upon  the  soil  we  were  halted  by  an  officer  of  the  customs  and 
our  carriage  and  ourselves  examined  as  to  the  transfers  of  dutiable 
articles  from  Canada  to  the  United  States.     By  this  act,  for  the  first 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    IIOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  145 

time  in  ray  life,  I  realized  that  I  had  been  absent  from  my  native  land, 
a  traveler  in  foreign  climes,  roaming  under  a  foreign  flag  and  subject  to 
the  laws  and  institutions  of  a  foreign  government.  How  happy  to 
again  return  beneath  the  sheltering  folds  of  our  own  flag,  and  breathe 
once  more  the  air  of  freedom ! 

Leaving  behind  me  the  roar  of  the  vast  cataract,  the  mighty  whirl 
of  Niagara's  waters,  and  the  extortionate  tradesmen,  hackmen,  guides, 
hotel  hosts,  and  beggars,  as  well  as  the  handsomest  Indian  girls  I  have 
ever  beheld  upon  the  continent,  with  their  beautiful  glass  beads, 
charms  and  souvenirs,  I  journeyed  rapidly  westward  along  the  borders 
of  our  great  lakes  until  I  reached  the  "  City  of  the  West."  I  will  not 
stop  to  describe  the  magnificence  of  Chicago,  with  its  teeming  thou- 
sands, its  vast  business  marts,  its  great  transatlantic  and  inter-oceanic 
trade,  and  its  iron  girdles,  making  tributary  to  its  granaries  all  the 
producing  lands  of  the  prolific  West.  It  would  take  a  volume  in  itself 
for  such  a  purpose.  The  life  and  history  of  a  people  who  beheld  their 
homes  and  worldly  possessions  vanish  in  a  day,  yea,  an  hour,  amid 
billows  of  flame  rolling  on  the  bosom  of  a  fiery  ocean,  and  whose 
unbroken  spirit  and  tireless  energy  laid,  amid  the  hot  ashes  of  their 
former  homes,  the  foundation  of  the  majestic  city  which  now  crowns 
their  sterling  effort  and  glorious  spirit  with  the  grandest  monument  of 
modern  times,  can  not  be  written  in  a  few  pages,  and  so  we  leave  that 
for  other  pens. 

Some  writer,  discoursing  upon  heat,  declares  it  to  be  "  the  unknown 
cause  of  the  sensation  of  warmth  and  of  a  multitude  of  common 
phenomena  in  nature  and  art."  I  certainly  have  faith  in  the  correct- 
ness of  this  definition.  I  remember,  after  leaving  Chicago,  fanned  by 
the  cool  breezes  of  Lake  Michigan,  crossing  the  molten  Missouri  at  St. 
Louis,  which  had  the  appearance  of  an  undulating  sea  of  lava  or  melted 
metal  of  some  sort,  and  entering  that  heat-laden  city  in  a  frame  of 
mind  and  body  sufficient  to  excitq.  the  commiseration  of  a  Stoic.  The 
ride  over  the  Alton  road  had  been  a  severely  hot  and  dusty  one,  and 
at  the  moment  I  presented  myself  before  the  clerk  of  the  Southern 
Hotel,  I  feel  confident  that  I  was  not  classed  in  his  mind  as  a  modern 
dude.  I  had  divested  myself  of  everthing  superfluous  in  the  way  of 
clothing,  and  was  appareled  in  a  thin  linen  coat,  so  far  as  the  upper 
garment  was  concerned.  I  think  I  wore  a  shirt,  but  no  vest  or  collar 
or  cuffs,  or  other  male  lingei^ie,  so  much  in  vogue.     I  had  been  taught 

10 


146  ECHOES   FROM  THE   KOCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

to  believe  that  hotel  clerks  were  pitiless,  umnindful  of  the  sufferings 
of  othere  and  utterly  remorseless  in  all  their  dealing  with  their  fellow- 
men.  That  it  was  always  considered  a  bright  day  in  their  lives  when 
they  could  encompass  still  greater  evil  about  a  traveler's  life.  I  knew 
that  most  men,  however  brave  in  battle,  were  quickly  subdued  by  the 
awful  majesty  surrounding  the  movements  of  a  hotel  clerk,  and  that 
the  traveler's  heart  had  been  known  to  be  loftily  lifted  by  even  so 
much  as  a  condescending  smile  (he  usually  freezes  j'ou  stone  dead  with 
a  glance)  just  sufficient  to  let  him  know  that  he  wasn't  really  angry 
that  he  registered  his  name  for  food  and  shelter  at  his  hotel.  I  say 
his  hotel,  for  who  but  the  clerks  own  the  hotel  ?  You  never  see  the 
proprietor  around.  It  is  the  clerks  who  run  the  institution  and  there- 
fore they  must  own  it. 

I  had  some  reputation  as  a  pleader  at  the  har  and  frequentl\%  it  is 
said,  had  brought  tears  to  the  eyes  of  court  and  jury.  I  tried  the 
same  art  upon  the  magnificent  clerks  of  the  grand  hotel-  Fortune 
favored  me.  I  was  successful.  I  often  think  of  him  with  a  great 
degree  of  regard  and  friendship.  1  have  often  sought  the  opportunity 
to  thank  him,  but  never  yet  found  it,  and  if  he  should  read  these  lines 
let  him  accept  them  as  my  thanks  for  his  kind  treatment. 

I  said  to  him :  "My  friend,  has  your  heart  ever  been  stirred  to  its 
deepest  depths  by  the  woes  and  sorrows  of  suflfeiing  humanity  i  *'  Here 
he  struck  an  attitude  of  one  about  to  refuse  a  tramp  who  had  asked 
for  lodffings  or  trust.  "Have  vou  ever  felt  that  a  brother's  suflFerings 
claim  a  brother's  sympathy  ?  That  the  smile  of  a  human  countenance 
when  marked  by  pity  can  illumine  life's  darkest  chambei*s  ?  That  each 
golden  link  in  pit\''s  chain  is  the  secret  chord  of  sympathy  that  runs 
from  heart  to  heart,  like  the  invisible  electric  spark  flashing  from  shore 
to  shore,  from  world  to  world,  far  down  in  the  depths  and  mysteries 
of  old  Ocean's  waves  ? "  At  this  point  a  shade  of  deeper  interest  stole 
over  his  handsome  countenance.  I  ascended  into  poetry.  I  quoted 
from  Darwin.     I  conquered.     He  melted  as  I  repeated : 

"No  radiant  pearl  which  crested  fortune  wears, 
No  gem  that,  twinkling,  hangs  from  beauty's  ears ; 
Not  the  bright  stars  which  night's  blue  arch  adorn; 
Nor  rising  sun  that  gilds  the  vernal  mom, 
Shine  with  such  lustre  as  the  tear  that  flows 
Down  virtue's  manly  cheek  for  other's  woes." 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


147 


He  could  no  longer  withstand  the  subdued  tenderness  of  such  an 
appeal,  and  earnestly  asked  in  a  broken  and  sympathetic  voice,  "What 
can  I  do  to  serve  3^ou?''  I  replied,  "  You  see  before  you  a  man  weighing 

225  pounds,  who  ex- 
pects to  travel  many, 
many  thousands  of 
weary  miles,  and  has 
but  just  begun  the 
vast  and  toilsome 
journey.  The  sum- 
mer's heat  which 
would,  alas,  be  no 
disgrace  to  the 
warmth  that  illumes 
the  subterranean 
chambers  of  Hades, 
has  well  nigh  roasted 
me  alive.  I  am  burn- 
ed into  my  marrow. 
The  hair  upon  my 
head  has  been  fried 
in  its  own  oil.  There 
are  chafings  on  my 
limbs,  boils  upon  my 
back  and  a  million  of 
tiny  shafts  filled  with 
the  poison  of  a  sum- 
mer solstice  piercing  each  thousandth  part  of  the  square  inches  that 
compose  the  surface  of  my  parboiled  body.  I  am  dying  for  a  wave  of 
cool  air.  My  tongue  is  parched,  my  lips  already  brittle,  and  my  breath 
smells  of  flame.  I  beseech  you  to  be  merciful,  even  as  the  angels  are 
merciful,  and  give  me  a  room  somewhere  in  this  vast  caravansary, 
where  a  cooling  breath  may  reach  me  ere  I  die ! " 

I  saw  that  I  had  conquered,  and  felt  once  more  the  power  of  elo- 
quence and  poetry!  He  said  :  "  I  will  have  mercy  upon  you  and  give 
you  the  coolest  room  in  the  house." 

I  saw  him  place  the  cabalistic  figures  upon  the  hotel  register  that 
should  consign  me  to  the  embrace  of  cooling  zephyrs.     I  heard   his 


ARRIVAL  AT  THE  SOUTHERN  HOTEL,  ST,  LOUIS. 


148  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

stentorian  words  to  the  messenger  boy,  to  guide  me  by  elevator  to  the 
room  numbered  five  thousand  and  something,  I  seated  myself  in  the 
ascending  car  and  as  we  journeyed  upward,  far  upward  toward  the 
realms  of  ether,  I  thought  of  what  the  governor  of  Georgia  said  of  the 
elevator,  when  he  fervently  asked  Grod  to  bless  the  man  who  invented 
a  perpendicular  railroad. 

And  still  upward  we  were  borne  on  the  swift  wings  of  steam ;  floor 
upon  floor  faded  from  view;  glimpses  of  melting  stalwart  men  and 
beautiful  women  passing  from  corridor  to  corridor,  came  like  the 
shadow  of  a  sunbeam  and  passed  out  of  sight  forever ;  gaily  caparisoned 
children  in  white  muslin  and  bright  ribbons,  romping  with  their  pretty 
nurses,  unmindful  of  the  torrid  heat.  Mirrors  reflecting  the  beauty  of 
the  scene ;  bright  garlands  overhanging  hallway  arches,  and  soft  notes 
of  distant  music,  all  passed  in  review  and  charmed  the  senses  as  we 
still  sped  onward  and  upward  in  our  journey  to  the  skies. 

I  said  to  my  guide,  the  messenger  boy,  '*  How  much  farther  on  is 
our  station?"  He  replied,  " Four  more  and  we  will  be  there."  And 
so  onward  we  went  with  a  jump  and  a  bound,  the  bells  all  the  while 
jingling  a  reply  to  the  impatient  travelers  .below,  awaiting  their  turn 
for  a  ride  on  the  "  j>erpendicular  railroad." 

At  last  we  stopped,  our  journey  was  at  an  end,  and  for  the  reason 
that  there  were  no  more  stories  to  climb :  another  bound  and  we  would 
have  gone  through  the  roof.  By  direction  we  entered  a  cell  at  the  end 
of  a  hallway,  which  appeared  about  the  size  of  a  little  garret  room  that 
creeps  back  in  the  memory  of  our  boyhood  days,  where  we  have  lain 
many  a  weary  night,  lulled  finally  to  sleep  by  the  musical  patter  of 
the  rain  upon  the  roof,  forgetful  alike  of  our  tears  and  our  heartaches, 
of  the  world  and  all  its  sorrows,  in  the  sweet  unbroken  slumber  of 
chDdhood  years. 

And  this  was  the  retreat  of  cooling  zephyrs  pictured  in  our  ramd 
during  our  long  journey  from  the  earth !  Here,  nine  stories  high,  with 
nothing  but  the  roof  to  shelter  us  from  the  burning  rays  of  a  torrid 
sun,  with  the  roof  itself  pierced,  penetrated  and  filtered  through  with 
particles  and  fragments  of  flame  rained  down  constantly  from  day- 
light to  darkness  from  the  burning  orb  above — shut  in  by  the  four  hot 
walls,  with  the  floor  itself  heated  from  the  projected  rays  of  the  sun 
until  you  could  not  stand  upon  it  in  your  bare  feet,  and  only  the  lack 
of  a  sulphurous  smell  to  relieve  you  of  the  fear  that  you  had  reached 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  149 

your  final  abode,  there  to  roast  upon  penitential  fires  for  the  "  deeds 
done  in  the  body" — was  the  "cool  room"  to  which  we  were  assigned 
by  the  tearful  clerk  whose  feelings  had  been  so  overwrought  by  our 
tender  appeal  for  human  kindness  and  sympathy  in  our  suffering ! 

And  so  it  "was  all  a  sham  and  delusion,  and  the  clerk  had  played 
us  for  a  greenhorn,  tampered  with  our  tender  feelings  and  yet  expected 
to  live !  We  siezed  a  club  (the  cast  off  club  of  an  ex  M.  C.  who  had  no 
further  use  for  it  and  had  presented  it  to  us)  and  ran  down  the  whole 
flisfht  of  nine  stories  to  brain  him  for  such  outrageous  treatment.  We 
reached  the  earth  safely  and  rushed  at  once  to  the  office.  The  clerk 
was  gone.  Another  austere  gentleman  was  behind  the  counter,  whose 
"  awful  majesty  "  instantly  wilted  us.  We  let  the  club  fall  upon  the 
marble  floor  with  a  ringing  sound,  and  as  the  reverberation  died  away, 
meekly  asked  for  a  cool  room,  so  that  we  might  remove  from  our 
present  abode  in  Tophet.  The  clerk  examined  the  register  and 
rejoined  in  a  sharp,  crisp  tone :  "  Can't  do  any  better  for  you.  You 
have  already  got  the  coolest  room  in  the  house ! "  We  turned  away 
in  sorrow.  Alas,  it  was  too  true!  It  was  not  imagination.  Our 
end  had  come.  We  were  in  Hades  and  had  the  favor  of  the  coolest 
room !  Silently  we  strode  back  to  its  hallowed  precincts.  We  found 
our  baggage  there,  brought  up  in  our  absence — we  had  come  to  stay ! 
We  concluded  to  make  the  best  of  the  bargain,  and  so  disrobed,  stood 
in  the  middle  of  the  room  and  took  a  Turkish  bath.  After  rubbing 
ourself  down  we  concluded  it  was  time  to  refresh  the  inner  man,  as  it 
was  now  five  o'clock,  and  so,  again  clothing  ourself  and  in  our  right 
mind,  descended  to  dinner. 

After  dinner  we  strolled  out  upon  the  shady  side  of  the  street  and 
tried  to  smoke  a  cigar.  We  were  compelled,  however,  to  desist.  It's 
flavor  was  lost  in  the  steam  of  the  street !  We  threw  it  away  in 
despair,  and  lost  the  interest  on  a  dollar  for  a  whole  year.  Night 
came  on  and  we  sat  and  crouched  from  the  glare  of  the  gas  lights 
beneath  the  shadow  of  the  wall.  We  sat  and  shivered  with  the  heat. 
We  thought  of  the  story  told  of  the  Arctic  sailor,  who  picked  up  a 
piece  of  steel  on  the  deck  of  his  vessel  and  burnt  his  fingers.  The 
extremes  had  met  and  heat  and  cold  w^ere  alike  in  their  results.  We 
too  had  fallen  upon  an  extreme  and  felt  the  cold  chills  run  down  our 
back !  Again  a  wave  of  heat  rolled  over  us  and  we  got  up  and  walked 
down  the  street  blazing  with  the  hot  gas  jets.     We  met  an  old  army 


150  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

friend  who  regaled  us  with  a  glass  of  cold  beer,  and  the  story  of  the 
Arizonian  who  died  and  went  to  sheol,  but  having  lived  in  Arizona 
found  it  too  cool  for  his  health  in  Tophet  and  sent  back  for  his  blankets. 
He  could  not  endure  the  sudden  change  of  temi^erature. 

"We  parted  with  our  friend,  the  General,  and  came  back  to  our  old 
seat  in  front  of  the  hotel.  We  sat  there  till  long  past  midnight  until 
the  streets  were  all  deserted.  Tired  and  worn  out  with  our  travel  and 
the  heat  we  fell  into  a  dose  and  slumbered  in  our  chair.  Finally,  from 
sheer  exhaustion,  we  were  compelled  to  seek  repose  upon  our  bed, 
redolent  with  the  memories  of  the  hot  hours  of  the  afternoon.  The 
elevator  had  ceased  running  and  we  climbed  the  lofty  stairs.  We 
reached  our  room,  opened  wide  the  door  and  found — Ye  Gods  ! — our 
burning  cheeks  fanned  by  a  cool  and  refreshing  breeze  I  It  was  indeed 
a  grateful  surprise.  The  abused  clerk  after  all  was  our  friend.  He 
had  in  truth  given  us  the  coolest  room  in  the  house — the  room  at  the  end 
of  the  hall  where  the  breeze  high  above  the  roofs  of  the  hot  city,  cooled 
by  the  descending  dew,  found  access  to  our  habitation.  We  instantly 
got  within  the  folds  of  our  mosquito  bar  and  lay  down  to  a  sweet  re- 
freshing slumber.  And  so  we  lost  all  of  those  hours  of  cool  rest  by 
failing  to  place  a  proper  credence  on  the  word  of  the  hotel  clerk.  We 
apologize. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ON  THE  MISSOIJKI  — STORY  OF  THE  GENTLE  MISSIONARY  ON  THE  MISSOTJRI  RIVER 
STEAMBOAT  —  THE  BAPTIST  ELDER  AND  THE  CAPTAIN  OF  THE  OCEAN 
STEAMER  IN  A  STORM  —  "  WELL,  JUST  SWEAR  A  LITTLE." 

We  did  not  dare  to  remain  a  day  longer.  We  were  afraid  our 
225  pounds  avoirdupois  would  suddenly  collapse,  melt  away  to  a  mere 
grease  spot.  We  sped  away  to  the  country  seat  of  an  old  college 
classmate,  where  we  hoped  to  exude  the  flames  that  were  consuming 
us.  We  drank  huo-e  drauo:hts  of  iced  buttermilk  to  cool  the  inward 
wounds,  and  swallowed  poultices  of  the  tender  white  flesh  of  chickens 
to  heal  the  scars.  The  complaint  succumbed  to  this  special  treatment, 
and  in  a  short  time  we  journeyed  on  to  the  historic  town  of  St.  Joseph, 
on  the  Missouri,  where  we  could  take  the  choice  of  a  dusty  stage  coach 
ride  to  Omaha,  or  sail  upon  the  bosom  of  the  "  Great  Muddy."  We 
chose  the  latter  route,  and  for  the  first  time  were  made  acquainted 
with  life  upon  a  Missouri  River  steamboat  stranded  upon  a  Missouri 
River  sand-bar. 

Here  we  met  and  became  acquainted  with  two  of  the  finest  and 
most  genial  young  oflBcers  in  the  military  service.  Lieutenants  Hamil- 
ton and  O'Brien,  who  were  on  their  way  to  rejoin  their  regiment, 
the  Sixth  Cavalr}'^,  then  stationed  at  an  outpost  on  the  line  of  the 
Union  Pacific  Railroad,  who  were  returning  from  a  visit  on  furlough 
from  their  homes  in  the  States. 

I  shall  long  remember  this  sail  up  this  historic  stream,  that  Lewis 
and  Clark  first  explored.  How  many  incidents  of  pleasure  and  profit 
were  crowded  into  that  experience.  The  loading  and  unloading  of 
the  boat;  the  various  temperaments  and  characteristics  of  the  pas- 
sengers; the  midnight  upon  the  river,  despite  its  snags  and  sand-bars; 
the  wood-yard  on  the  Missouri,  and  the  ghostly  men  with  their  weird 
bundles  of  wood  flying  swiftly  from  shore  to  boat,  and  from  boat 
to  shore,  across  the  gang-way,  in  alternate  darkness  and  glare  of 
torches;  the  approach  to  dangerous  places,  and  the  quick  dropping  of 
the  lead,  and  the  cry  of  "Mark  Twain  ";    the  rush  on  the  bar,  the 

151 


152 


ECHOES  FBOM  THE  EOCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


ripping  jar,  and  the  sudden  stoppage  of  the  wheel  and  engine,  and  the 
outpouring  of  royal  sailor  vernacular  of  all  the  cr,ew,  from  captain  to 
cabin  boy.  And  such  a  vernacular !  I  learned  it  by  heart.  By  the 
time  we  got  off  and  away  from  that  sand-bar,  I  became  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  dialect  and  could  repeat  it  word  for  word.  Xever 
were  three  days  more  actively  employed  in  the  study  of  language. 
Xever  before  had  I  been  made  acquainted  with  the  artistic  force  of 
old  "Anglais  and  Saxon,"  when  properly  rolled  out  with  the  word  of 
command;  not  even  in  camp  or  on  the  battle  field;  and  no  "Army 
in  Flanders "  could  approach  it  in  excellence,  power  and  choice  of 
expression.  The  first  mate  was  the  champion  linguist.  I  learned 
more  from  him  than  from  all  the  others.  The  captain  and  crew  were 
generally  proficient,  but  the  mate  was  a  "professional."  He  had 
made  the  study  "  a  specialty."  I  used  to  sit  all  day  long  within  the 
sound  of  his  musical  voice  and  listen  to  the  black  adjectives  roll  out  in 
rich  profusion  and  quick  succession.  His  voice  was,  indeed,  both 
strong  and  niusical,  and  would  ring  out  like  the  clang  and  hammer  of 
an  alarm  bell  on  the  midnight  air,  or  it  would  strike  you  in  daylight 

with  all  the  shudder 
of  the  electric  shock, 
if  your  nerves  were 
particularly"  sensitive. 
The  third  day  upon 
the  sand-bar  it  grew 
so  strong  and  constant 
that  it  became  monot- 
onous, and  then  it  was 
a  clergyman  aboard, 
going  out  as  a  mission- 
nary  to  some  heathen 
congregation  in  the 
mountains,  went  be- 
low to  consult  with 
.the  mate  and  suggest 
a  suspension  in  the 
flow  of  the  liquid  vol- 
ume of  his  speech.  It 
THE  MATE  AND  THE  CLERGYMAN.  was  with  the  quiet  air 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  153 

and  the  ease  and  dignity  of  his  gentle  profession  that  the  clergyman 
went  below  to  make  the  suggestion.  There  was  no  halt,  however,  in 
the  long  roll  of  black  words.  The  volume  was  more  powerful  than 
before;  the  object  alone  was  changed.  This  time  it  was  directed 
toward  the  "  meek-eyed  preacher."  How  he  made  his  escape  I  never 
knew.  He  would  not  tell ;  in  fact,  he  would  not  even  talk  about  it. 
When  he  came  back,  however,  his  hat  and  gold-bowed  spectacles 
were  gone;  likewise  a  wig  with  which  he  previously  adorned  his  head. 
In  a  part  of  the  vernacular^  to  which  I  referred  above,  that  mate 
had  "  snatched  him  bald ! "  I  never  heard  of  him  again  attempting 
missionary  work  on  a  Missouri  steamboat. 

The  scene  put  me  in  mind  of  the  story  of  the  Baptist  elder,  and 
the  swearing  captain  of  the  ocean  vessel,  in  which  he  sailed  for  Europe 
to  attend  a  religious  convention.  He  became  thoroughly  annoyed 
at  the  captain's  way  of  swearing  at  his  men  to  compel  them  to 
perform  their  duty  with  alacrity,  and  one  day  had  a  quiet  talk 
with  the  captain  and  expressed  his  mind  quite  fully  and  freely  as 
to  its  impropriety. 

The  captain  replied  that  it  would  be  utterly  impossible  for  him  to 
command  his  men  without  swearing  at  them.  This  the  elder  denied 
in  emphatic  terms,  declaring  as  his  firm  belief  that  could  it  be  estab- 
lished by  trial,  the  crew  of  the  vessel  would  more  readily  and  effect- 
ually obey  the  captain's  commands  should  they  be  treated  as  gentle- 
men and  not  as  dogs. 

The  captain  demurred  to  this  statement  of  the  prelate,  but  was 
willing  for  his  sake  to  give  the  elder's  plaq  a  trial.  That  afternoon  an 
emergency  arose  which  tested  the  scheme  admirably.  A  storm  of 
great  severity  suddenly  struck  the  vessel  and  the  waves  began  to  roll 
and  the  wind  to  blow  "  great  guns."  The  elder  was  on  deck  to  observe 
the  manner  in  which  the  crew  would  work  when  their  manhood  was 
recognized,  and  they  should  no  longer  be  addressed  as  dogs,  and  to 
rejoice  at  his  victory.  But  the  elder's  words  of  advice  and  good  sug- 
gestion had  been  spoken  in  the  captain's  ear  while  sailing  on  a  peace- 
ful sea.  Now  the  storm-lashed  ocean  cast  over  his  revered  form  its 
spray  from  the  white  capped  waves  that  threatened  each  moment  to 
engulf  him.  He  turned  piteously  to  the  captain  in  his  fright  and 
asked  if  he  did  not  intend  to  instantly  take  steps  to  save  the  vessel  from 
destruction.     The    captain  replied   that    he  had    already   spoken  to 


154  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

Ibis  crew  in  the  mild  manner  suggested  by  the  elder  and  that  his  words 
had  no  effect  whatever.  And  to  convince  thp  elder  he  turned  to 
I  the  nearest  man  and  said:  "  Mr,  Brown,  wiQ  you  please  go  aloft  and 
*  reef  the  main  sail  ?  Mr.  Jones,  will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  assist  him  in 
'his  laudable  endeavor?  Mr.  Smith,  will  you  likewise  try  to  be  of  some 
service  in  the  same  work  ?  It  is  necessary  that  you  should  go  quickly 
about  your  work  and  be  as  expeditious  as  possible,  otherwise  the  gale 
will  tear  us  to  ribbons.  Now,  gentlemen,  please  do  as  I  request,  and  1 
and  the  elder  and  all  of  us  will  be  greatly  obliged  to  you  and  equally 
benefited  by  the  prompt  and  efficient  performance  of  your  duty." 

Xot  a  man  stirred  I  They  all  stood  as  mute  and  still  as  the  gale 
would  permit  them  and  gazed  with  intense  astonishment  upon  their 
dementi  commander;  for  each  and  all  believed  he  had  gone  daft  and 
was  now  a  lunatic,  and  this  to  a  superstitious  sailor  meant  far  more 
than  the  storm  itself. 

The  captain  in  turn  gazed  upon  the  elder  with  a  look  of  resigna- 
tion, quietly  remarking,  '*  You  now  see  for  yourself.  I  have  no  further 
command  over  my  men;  they  will  not  obey  a  single  order,  and  in  a 
little  whUe  we  will  all  go  down  to  '  Davy  Jones'  locker !'  " — which 
being  interpreted  to  the  elder  meant  that  the  elder  and  all  the  others 
would  soon  go  down  with  the  ship  to  the  bottom  of  the  ocean. 

Now  thoroughly  alarmed  the  elder  begged  the  captain  to  save 
them.  The  captain,  however,  remained  obdurate,  declaring  it  impos- 
sible to  make  the  men  work  without  swearing  at  them,  and  that  noth- 
ing could  be  done  without  their  co-operation.  '*  Very  weU,"  said  the 
elder,  "  this  being  a  case  of^great  emergency,  I  think  it  best  now  that 
you  should  swear  '  a  little ' ! " 

What  a  change  instantly  took  place.  The  captain  jumped  ten  feet 
at  a  bound  riffht  in  the  midst  of  his  wondering  crew.  He  veiled  at  the 
top  of  his  voice :  "  Here,  Brown,  you idiot,  what  are  you  stand- 
ing there  for  like  a  stoughton  bottle  ?     Get  aloft  instantly  you  son  of 

a  *gun'  and  reef  that  sail  or  I  will  break  every bone  in  j'our  body. 

You  get  up  there  too,  Jones,  you lazy  lout.     I  give  you  just 

thirty  seconds,  or  I  will  brain  you  I  And  you,  Smith,  waddle  along 
too  just  as  fast  as  you  can  up  the  shrouds,  or  I  will  knock  the  wind  out 
of  you  in  ten  seconds.  You  are  the est,  laziest,  most  good-for- 
nothing  bummer  that  ever  boarded  a  vessel  or  walked  a  gang  plank. 
Get  up,  or  I  will  burst  your carcass  wide  open !     Get  up  and  reef 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  165 

that  sail  and  lower  the  topgallant  mast !     And  you,  Pat  Gallagher, 

you Irish  son  of  a  '  gun,'  and  the  rest  of  you,  help  to  get  this  ship 

about,  or  we.  Elder  and  all,  will  go  right  straight  to ." 

You  just  ought  to  have  seen  the  men  move !  Now,  their  captain 
was  all  right.  He  was  no  longer  a  lunatic,  going  about  like  a  crazy 
man,  calling  them  gentlemen  and  all  such  foolish  stuff.  He  had 
regained  his  mind  and  the  use  of  proper  language.  They  could  now 
obey  his  orders  with  the  full  belief  in  their  correctness,  as  he  was  now 
clothed  in  his  right  mind !  The  reef  was  taken,  the  ship  was  got  about 
and  the  good  elder's  life  saved  by  just  a  little  swearing  ! 

We  finally  got  off  the  bar,  but  at  little  intervals  of  time,  during, 
the  rest  of  the  passage  to  Omaha  our  ears  were  greeted  day  and  night 
by  the  rasping  voice  of  the  Celtic  sailor  with  the  lead,  crying  out  in 
the  long  swell  of  a  continuous  and  peculiar  cadence,  "Wan  fut," 
"  f-o-i-v-e  fate"  and  "Mark  Twain  "  until,  together  with  the  ringing  of 
bells,  the  blowing  of  whistles  and  the  sudden  backing  or  forward 
plunge  of  the  vessel,  we  were  unable  to  remain  quiet  long  enough  to 
take  in  the  beautiful  scenery  that  greeted  us  on  both  sides  of  the 
stream. 

The  river  traffic  between  St.  Louis  and  Omaha  and  all  intermedi- 
ate points,  at  that  time  so  great,  has,  in  a  very  large  degree,  been 
superceded  by  the  railroads  tliat  now  rush  along  with  such  tremendous 
speed  as  to  claim  generic  names,  such  as  "  cannon  ball." 

A  revolution  in  transportation  has  been  effected  by  the  introduc- 
tion of  steam  upon  the  rails,  and  the  hoarse  cry  of  the  steamboat 
heralding  its  approach  along  the  river  bank  has  given  way  to  the  quick 
shrill  shriek  of  the  engine  rolling  in  upon  the  iron  rails  its  long  sinuous 
trail  of  cars  and  depositing  its  burden  in  the  heart  of  the  city. 

Omaha  is  situated  upon  the  right  bank  of  the  Missouri  River 
about  twenty  miles  north  of  the  mouth  of  Nebraska  River,  opposite 
Council  Bluffs,  with  which  it  is  to-day  connected  by  the  splendid 
Union  Bridge  thrown  across  the  Missouri  at  that  point,  and  with  the 
great  radiating  system  of  railways  to  all  points  eastward  and  to  the 
country  north,  south  and  west,  b}'^  other  railroads  of  which  it  is  the 
terminus.  It  was  the  starting  point  in  1864  of  the  great  transconti- 
nental railroad,  and  before  the  construction  of  that  road,  it  was  the 
most  northerly  outfitting  place  for  overland  trains  to  the  far  West. 
Its  population  to-day  is  a  hundred   thousand.      It  derived  its  name 


156  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

from  a  tribe  of  Dakota  Indians,  was  laid  out  in  1854  and  became  an 
incorporated  city  in  1857. 

But  the  outlines  of  the  old  town  have  faded  with  the  old  land- 
marks. New  scenes  have  opened  upon  the  vision  of  those  who  lingered 
within  its  gates  in  those  old  and  stirring  days  which  marked  the  advent 
of  the  great  line  of  railroad,  whose  iron  bands  have  bound  together 
the  extremes  of  the  Union.  Lowing  herds  have  wandered  oflf  forever 
with  the  blue  "  ships  of  the  desert " ;  for  steam  has  made  a  revolution 
in  transportation,  and  the  bull  whacker  has  gone ! 

The  traveler  now  finds  the  city  lighted  with  gas,  and  all  modem 
improvements  greet  his  approach.  He  finds,  as  food  for  his  mind, 
three  daily,  six  weekly  and  three  monthly  papers;  for  his  morals 
twenty-five  churches,  and  for  his  comfort  and  convenience  numerous 
hotels  and  opera  houses. 

Its  accommodations,  however,  in  this  last  respect  were  not  always 
of  the  most  perfect  order.  About  the  year  1 866  the  eccentric  George 
Francis  Train  became  interested  in  the  growth  and  advancement  of 
this  frontier  city,  which  had  been  laid  out  upon  a  most  magnificent 
scale.  At  that  time  there  was  but  a  single  "  first-class "  hotel  in  the 
place,  and  that  alone  in  theory.  Of  course  there  would  naturally  be  in 
hotel  jparlam;e  a  rush  at  the  dinner  hour  for  the  best  places  and  waiters. 
It  does  not  take  a  hotel  habitue  long  to  discriminate  in  this  respect. 
George  Francis  Train  was  a  regular  boarder  at  this  hotel.  He  was 
then  in  his  most  palmy  days,  during  the  construction  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Eailroad,  with  plenty  of  money  and  friends.  He  was  always 
noted  for  his  high-strung  and  self-willed  nature,  and  would  rather  go 
to  jail  than  submit  to  a  rebuff  or  a  personal  affront  of  the  slightest 
character. 

One  day  he  entered  the  dining-hall  of  the  hotel  and  found  his  own 
seat  occupied.  There  was'  no  help  for  it  then  or  redress  thereafter,  as 
it  was  occupied  by  a  stalwart  man  from  the  plains,  who  likewise 
possessed  an  overwhelming  amount  of  personal  esteem,  and  ever  in  the 
habit  of  discovering  and  sustaining  the  "  main  chance."'  It  was  use- 
less to  argue,  and  George  Avas  compelled  to  yield.  He  had  his  revenge, 
however,  upon  the  hotel  proprietor  for  permitting  the  act.  He  went 
across  the  street  about  a  block  away  from  that  place,  selected  a  site, 
and  in  nineiy  days  (I  really  think  it  was  sixty  days;  I  say  ninety  for 
fear  my  veracity  might  be  questioned)   completed,   furnished  and 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  157 

opened  to  the  traveling  public,  the  finest  proportioned  hotel  of  that 
early  day  between  Chicago  and  San  Francisco.  I  have  frequently 
slept  beneath  its  roof  and  sat  at  its  board,  and  feel  encouraged,  by  the 
remembrance  of  its  good  cheer,  to  speak  thus  kindly  and  truthfully  of 
this  old  friend  of  the  traveler  journeying  across  the  plains. 

The  result  was  to  divide  the  traffic  and  injure  the  old  house  amaz- 
ingly. But  the  *'  Cozzens'  House,"  as  well  as  the  old  "  International," 
have  both  given  away  to  the  more  elegant  and  complete  structures 
that  now  adorn  the  cit}'^,  and  greet  with  pleasure  the  eye  of  the 
traveler,  as  dust-covered,  travel-stained  and  weary-worn  he  seeks 
repose  and  recuperation  beneath  their  refined  and  hospital  roofs. 

As  I  was  one  of  the  first  to  enjoy  the  cheery  hospitality  of  the 
Cozzens'  House,  and  was  well  acquainted  with  its  history,  I  have 
often  been  reminded  by  the  George  Francis  Train  dinner  scene  of  a 
similar  one  that  occurred  at  a  famous  ante-fire  hotel  in  the  city  of 
Chicago.  It  is  well  known  to  be  the  usual  custom  to  retain  a  seat  for 
a  favored  guest  by  reversing  the  chair  and  turning  the  back  toward  the 
table.  Upon  this  occasion  there  was  a  large  attendance  upon  a  con- 
vention or  some  notable  gathering  in  the  city,  and  the  hotels,  as  a  con- 
sequence, were  quite  full.  The  ainner  was  at  full  tide,  guests  order- 
ing, waiters  running  hither  and  thither,  champagne  bottles  popping 
and  everthing  full  of  life  and  vigorous  gastronomical  activity,  when  a 
large,  taU  man,  considerably  over  six  feet  in  height,  and  weighing 
perhaps  in  the  neighborhood  of  300  pounds,  made  his  appearance  at 
the  doorway  of  the  dining  hall  and  cast  his  eye  over  the  room. 
Every  seat  seemed  taken,  and  he  was  about  to  retire  when,  at  the 
farther  end  of  the  hall,  he  espied  a  vacant  seat  with  the  chair  turned 
back  upon  the  side  of  the  table. 

Like  a  giant  he  strode  down  the  long  aisle  between  the  tables  until 
he  reached  the  vacant  seat  and  grasped  the  reversed  chair.  At  this 
moment  one  of  the  colored  waiters,  who  had  this  particular  chair  and  seat 
at  the  table  in  his  care  and  keeping,  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  favored 
guest,  ran  hastily  to  the  newly  arrived  guest  as  he  was  in  the  act  of 
appropriating  the  chair  to  his  own  use,  and  quickly  called  out  in  the 
peculiar  dialect  of  his  race,  "  Say,  sah,  we's  keeping  dat  seat  fo  a  gen- 
tleman! "  "  By he's  come ! "  responded  the  big  man,  and  imme- 
diately appropriated  the  seat  and  surroundings,  much  to  the  consterna- 
tion and  disgust  of  the  waiter  who,  doubtless,  lost  his  fee  that  day.     I 


158  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

never  heard,  however,  that  the  Palmer  House  or  the  Grand  Pacific 
were  erected  from  such  a  cause.  I  presume  the  irate  guest  on  his 
return  smothered  his  wrath  in  a  "  second  bottle "  at  the  proprietor's 
expense.  They  have  a  way  of  settling  these  things  in  Chicago  very 
neatly  when  the  occasion  requires. 

And  thus  the  frontier  outpost  of  1854  becomes  by  the  law  of 
American  progress  the  prosperous  and  growing  inland  cit\'  of  to^lay. 
The  traveler  who  then  obtained  his  general  outfit  for  the  long  and 
perilous  journey  across  the  continent  at  what  was  but  little  more  than 
a  trading-post,  now  returns  to  find  a  city^  of  a  hundred  thousand  peo- 
ple living  in  weath  and  luxury.  He  rides  over  several  lines  of  street 
railways ;  visits  the  United  States  Court  House  for  the  district  court 
of  Nebraska,  and  listens  to  the  argument  upon  appeal  to  the  circuit  court 
now  sitting  as  such,  before  his  honor  the  circuit  judge  from  the  final 
judgment  of  the  district  court  in  the  admiralty  case  of  Montgomery  vs. 
Anderson  for  the  loss  of  thirty-seven  barrels  of  rum;  thence  inspect 
the  large  and  elegant  buildings  for  schools,  the  extensive  railway  struct- 
ures, the  State  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  the  splendid  resi- 
dences and  business  houses  which  have  taken  the  place  of  the  little 
huts  in  the  outskirts — the  large  iron  works,  rolling  mills  and  machine 
shops,  and  the  extensive  establishment  for  smelting,  separating  and 
refining  the  ores  of  the  precious  metals  and  copper,  lead  and  zinc, 
which  constantly  pour  in  from  all  the  mining  camps  along  the  line  of 
the  great  Overland  Kailway;  thence  he  visits  the  newspaper  offices, 
and  retires  to  rest  in  one  of  the  elegant  hotels  to  await  the  Sabbath 
dawn  to  inspect  the  beautiful  churches  which  have  arisen  upon  the 
ashes  of  the  Indian's  wigwam  and  the  camp  fires  of  the  early  pioneers 
of  his  day. 

Such  is  the  law  of  progress.  That  which  Carlyle  delighted  in 
calling  "  a  living  monument,"  that  which  makes  the  goal  of  yesterday 
the  starting  post  of  to-morrow,  and  the  wise  man  of  to-day  still  wiser 
to-morrow. 


CHAPTER  XL 

JOURNEYING  TOWAHD  JTJLESBURG  — THE  BROAD  NEBRASKA  PLAINS —  "  SPOTTED 
TAIL  "—RACE  ON  THE  IRON  ROAD  BETWEEN  AN  ANTELOPE  AND  THE  "  MIGHTY 
ENGINE"  — JULESBURG  BY  GASLIGHT  — THE  COACH  RIDE  TO  DENVER  — THE 
PERILOUS  ROAD  — INDIAN  SIGNS  — INDIANS  CIRCLING  AROUND  US— COACHES 
HALTED  AND  HORSES  COKRALED  —  WAITING  FOR  THE  SUNDOWN  ATTACK  — 
THE  CITY  OF  DENVER  BY  DAYLIGHT— COL.  JAMES  J.  TRACY -TALL  CHURCH 
SPIRES,  AND  CLOSED  STORES  ON  SUNDAY,  IN  THE  PLACE  OF  THE  "  HURDY 
GURDY"  AND  THE  "WAR  CRY"  OF  THE  AUCTIONEERS. 

Journeying  toward  Julesburg,  the  summer  terminus  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad,  on  a  warm  September  evening,  seated  on  the  rear 
platform  of  the  last  car,  watching  the  long  lines  of  bright  rails  speed 
magically  away  in  the  distance,  as  the  shades  of  night  dropped  silently 
upon  the  broad  Nebraska  plains,  while  the  fiery  sparks  from  the  engine 
blew  swiftly  overhead,  mingling  with  the  stars  that  twinkled  through 
the  darkness,  my  mind  passed  rapidly  from  retrospection  to  thought 
upon  the  future,  and  the  scenes  of  wild  adventure  that  were  doubtless 
in  store  for  me.  I  did  not,  however,  recall  the  gloomy  thoughts  of 
Shakespeare,  as  I  strove  to  pierce  the  dark  rim  of  the  future  and  obtain 
its  revelations : 

"  Oh,  if  this  were  seen! 
The  happiest  youth,  viewing  his  progress  through 
What  perils  past,  what  crosses  to  ensue, 
Would  shut  the  book  and  sit  him  down  and  die." 

I  chose  rather  to  embrace  the  more  cheerful  suggestion  of  our 
Longfellow,  who  so  sweetly  tells  us  not  to  look  mournfully  into  the  past, 
but  wisely  to  improve  the  present  and  go  forth  to  meet  the  shadowy 
future  without  fear  and  with  a  manly  heart. 

I  could  not  but  think  of  the  weary  men,  who  years  before  had 
trudged  over  the  same  soil,  mile  upon  mile,  with  blistered  feet,  while 
we  swept  along  on  the  wings  of  the  wind  accomplishing  in  luxurious 
ease  in  a  single  hour  that  which  required  of  the  pioneer  three  days  of 
severe  toil. 

When  morning  dawned  upon  the  plains  the  great  round  fiery  disk 
seemed  to  rise  out  of  the  earth  as  from  beneath  the  sea  when  sailing 

159 


160 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 


on  the  waters.  Two  hundred  and  thirty-one  miles  from  Omaha  we 
passed  "Plum  Creek,"  the  scene  of  a  great  Indian  butchery  alluded  to 
in  another  chapter  of  this  book. 

In  front  of  the  hotel  at  Xorth  Platte  Station,  I  saw  for  the  first 
time  the  famous  Indian  Chief  "  Spotted  Tail,"  who  from  a  most  relent- 
less foe  of  the  whites,  had  been  converted  to  a  state  of  enduring  friend- 
ship by  the  simple  act  of  the  commander  of  one  of  the  posts  upon  the 
frontier,  who  had  bestowed  a  magnificent  military  burial  upon  a  favorite 
daughter  of  the  chief,  and  laid  her  away  to  rest  in  accordance  with 

the  Indian  fashion,  with 
beating  drums,  flying 
flags,  marching  soldiers 
and  the  firing  of  the 
great  guns  of  the  fort 
over  her  dusk}'^  remains. 
As  we  were  speeding 
swiftly  along  over  the 
smooth  plains  during 
the  early  morning  hours, 
we  ran  into  a  small 
herd  of  antelope,  which 
instantly  scattered,  save 
one  more  courageous 
than  the  rest,  which  be- 
gan a  race  with  the 
train  in  the  endeavor  to 
cross  the  track  ahead  of 
the  engine.  It  was  in 
deed  an  exciting,  curi- 
ous  and  in teresting 
sight  to  observe  the  con- 
test between  the  little 
brown  animal  with  its 
soft  gazelle-hke  eye, 
and  the  mighty  engine  belching  forth  its  flame  and  smoke. 

It  was  a  trial  of  speed  not  often  witnessed,  and  instantly  every 
passenger  and  employe  of  the  great  train  plowing  the  wilderness 
became  thoroughly  interested  in  the  result.  Onward  sped  the  train 
upon  its  smooth  and  even  track,  until  it  seemed  to  leap  through  the  air 


INDIAN  MODE  OF  BURIAL. 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   EOCKY   MOUNTAINS.  ]61 

in  the  hope  and  expectancy  of  success.  Close  by  its  ponderous  side 
ran  the  frail  little  animal  that,  with  prodigious  bounds,  slowly  but  surely 
gained  upon  the  iron  horse.  Shout  upon  shout  rent  the  air  as  if  to 
startle  from  its  base  the  brave  little  beast  that  so  swiftly  annihilated 
space.  By  tremendous  effort  it  continued  to  gain  upon  the  train  until 
at  length  it  was  neck  and  neck  with  the  engine.  What  a  curious  sight 
it  was  upon  that  distant  western  plain,  in  the  hazy  atmosphere  of  the 
early  autumn  morn,  to  behold  that  small  and  delicate  animal  compet"^ 
for  the  mastery  with  the  mighty  element  that  had  revolutionized  the 
world  of  trade  and  traffic !  We  were  cleaving  the  air  at  the  rate  of 
fifty  miles  an  hour  at  the  moment  the  little  racer  seemed  ready  to 
bound  across  the  track  ahead  of  the  engine.  At  this  instant,  fearful 
of  defeat,  the  engineer  pulled  wide  open  his  throttle-valve,  while  the 
fireman  made  the  red  heat  shoot  up  in  flames  to  increase  the  speed. 
We  fairly  flew  through  the  air  at  more  than  a  mile  a  minute.  A  great 
cloud  of  smoke  rolled  in  billows  over  the  train  and  the  hot  cinders  fell 
all  around ;  but  the  little  antelope  still  clung  to  the  engine  and  would 
not  be  shaken  off.  I  do  not  now  remember  how  many  miles  the  race 
continued,  but  suddenly  the  engineer  pulled  the  steam  cord,  and,  as  the 
awful  sound  of  escaping  steam  fell  upon  the  little  brown  beast  that  so 
valiantly  had  striven  for  the  mastery,  its  powers  seemed  to  cease  at 
once,  and  it  instantly  collapsed  and  fell  prone  upon  the  earth.  We  all 
believed  the  terrible  voice  of  the  locomotive  had  snapped  its  heart- 
strings with  fear.  Instantly  the  brakes  were  applied,  the  panting 
engine  stood  still  upon  the  silvery  track  and  we  hastened  back  to  where 
the  antelope  lay  in  death,  as  we  supposed.  Two  of  us  approached  at 
the  same  moment  and  put  forth  our  arms  to  bear  it  back  to  the  wait- 
ing train.  True,  ever  true  to  the  instincts  of  its  wild  nature — loving 
the  freedom  of  its  vast  range  upon  the  plains,  and,  as  if  scorning  the 
attempt  of  man  at  its  capture,  it  rose  up  suddenly  and  bounded  away 
upon  the  prairie  with  the  same  swift  speed  with  which  it  ran  the 
marvelous  race  with  the  iron  courser.  Soon  it  was  lost  to  view  amid 
the  tall  grass  that  skirted  a  distant  branch.  We  did  not  regret  its 
escape  from  man's  bondage.  Its  life  and  home  was  freedom,  and  in 
that,  typical  of  our  own,  for 

"Freedom's  soil  hath  only  place 
For  a  free  and  fearless  race." 

At  noon   we  reached    the  terminus    of    the  road    and    thenceforth 

11 


162  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

farewell  to  the  ease  and  luxury  of  the  palace  car  I  Here,  after  a  brief 
stay,  we  would  take  to  the  stage  coach  and  go  out  upon  that  wild 
road  of  adventure  where  so  many  ha^l  laid  dowri-\heir  lives. 

Julesburg  was  just  the  town  I  hatl  pictured  from  the  various  rep- 
resentations I  had  read,  and  heard  from  those  who  had  invaded  its 
precincts.  It  derived  its  name  from  the  patronymic  of  an  old  French 
settler,  Jules  Beni,  who  for  many  years  resided  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Fort  Sedgewick,  lying  just  across  the  stream  from  this  summer  ter- 
minus of  the  road,  and  of  whom  I  shall  have  more  to  say  at  a  point 
beyond. 

Of  course,  this  was  all  historic  ground,  replete  with  incident  and 
tale  of  Indian  treachery  and  bloodshed.  The  first  man  I  saw  on 
entering  the  town  was  a  walking  battery.  He  was  standing  at  the 
station  as  we  alighted  from  the  cars.  In  a  few  moments  lie  was  joined 
by  some  thirty  or  forty  more  of  the  same  pattern,  although  I  think 
some  had  magazines  as  well  as  batteries.  It  immediatel}'  occurred 
to  me  that  there  had  been  an  Indian  raid  upon  this  city  of  the 
wilderness.  I  asked  one  of  the  warriors  if  there  had  not  been  a 
battle  ?  He  said  no,  but  wanted  to  know  why  I  asked  the  question. 
I  replied  that  I  judged  so  from  the  vast  number  and  variety  of  deadly 
weapons  he  carried  around.  He  laughed  vociferously  and  called  me  a 
"  pilgrim  "  and  a  "  tenderfoot "  and  quietly  suggested  that  the  first 
best  thing  I  could  do  was  to  get  "  heeled."  All  of  this  sounded  very 
strange  and  queer,  but  I  soon  learned  the  value  of  the  suggestion,  and 
the  time  swiftly  arrived  when  I  too  became  a  partial  "  battery  "  and 
rammed  my  derringer  in  m\'  pocket  with  the  same  ease,  dexterity  and 
necessity  with  which  I  placed  my  hat  upon  my  head.  I  walked  into 
the  main  part  of  the  town  and  saw  Julesburg  b\'  daylight.  It  was 
composed  of  all  manner  of  stores,  saloons  and  other  business  places,  and 
a  multitude  of  such  "  warriors  "  as  I  had  met  on  my  arrival.  In  fact 
every  man  I  saw  was  a  "  warrior,"  judging  from  his  armament.  There 
was  also  an  innumerable  number  of  ''ladies''  all  painted  and  clothed 
in  white  and  spangled  silks.  I  had  a  friend  there — one  of  the  boys 
noted  for  his  desperate  bravery.  He  said :  "  To-night  you  shall  see 
Julesburg  by  gas-light ! "  I  saw  it  in  all  its  deformity,  and  over  it  I 
would  draw  the  curtain  of  forgetfulness. 

The  road  between  Julesburg  and  Denver,  which  during  the 
summer  of  1867  was  the  direct  mail  route  to  the  West,  was  so  beset  by 


RACE  WITH  AN  ANTELOPE. 
163 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIKS.  165 

Indian  violence  that  it  became  necessary  for  the  protection  of  both  the 
mails  and  the  lives  of  the  passengers  to  travel  in  quite  large  parties, 
well  armed  and  willing  to  fight.  Consequently  the  rule  was  estab- 
lished by  the  superintendent  of  the  mail  route  for  three  coaches  to 
start  together  every  other  day,  thus  transporting  the  mails  and  pas- 
sengers that  had  accumulated  daily  at  the  end  of  the  line. 

The  second  day  after  our  arrival  at  Julesburg  was  the  day  upon 
which  such  a  start  should  be  made,  and  so,  early  in  the  morning,  three 
large  Concord  coaches,  each  drawn  by  four  spirited  horses,  were  driven 
in  front  of  the  mail  and  express  oflBce  and  there  loaded  with  pas- 
sengers and  the  mail  and  express  matter  destined  for  the  Pacific  coast 
and  all  intermediate  points. 

We  swung  gayly  across  the  Platte  River,  passed  over  the  old 
historic  battle-field  and  by  the  newly -erected  Fort  Sedgwick  (named 
after  one  of  the  bravest  of  men  who  have  held  a  commission  in  the 
military  service  of  the  Government),  and  thence  on  the  direct  route  to 
Denver,  nearly  every  mile  of  which  had  been  marked  by  bloodshed 
and  savage  violence. 

Nothwithstanding  the  danger,  the  travel  at  that  time  was  quite 
large,  and  the  bolder  spirits  chafed  at  the  delay  occasioned  by  the 
cautious  movements  of  the  drivers  in   sight  of  "  Indistn  signs." 

There  were  forty-three  parties  in  all,  including  the  drivers  on  the 
three  coaches ;  each  of  the  other  two  coaches  carrying  fifteen  passen- 
gers and  ours  but  thirteen.  Each  man  was  armed  with  a  "  Ballard  " 
rifle  and  forty  rounds  of  cartridges  loaned  by  the  company  for  the 
daily  emergency.  Of  course  each  man  carried  also  his  own  weapons, 
usually  consisting  of  a  revolver,  bowie-knife  and  a  pair  of  derringers. 
These  last  occupied  a  very  important  part  of  the  traveler's  thoughts  as 
well  as  his  fighting  outfit,  for  they  were  intended  not  for  the  blood- 
thirsty savage  but  for  the  man  himself.  It  may  appear  strange  to 
relate  at  this  distant  date  that  such  was  the  fact,  but  nevertheless  it  was 
a  fact,  as  all  who,  from  business,  pleasure  or  curiosity  invaded  the 
"  Indian  country,"  as  it  was  called  at  that  day,  can  now  attest.  They 
were  the  inseparable  companions  of  such  a  man,  and  never  to  be 
discharged  at  the  enemy  during  an  engagement,  but  their  fire  to  be 
always  reserved  for  the  unfortunate  man  himself  should  he  chance  to 
become  a  captive.  The  tortures  and  brutalities  inflicted  by  the  savage 
upon  his  defenseless  prisoner  were  so  horrible  and  so  utterly  diabolical 


166  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOrXTAIXS. 

and  bej^ond  the  comprehension  of  those  unacquainted  with  savage 
character,  that  it  became  incumbent  on  the  man  immediately  upon 
his  capture,  if  no  means  of  escape  offered,  to  blow  out  his  own  brains. 
I  possessed  a  pair,  a  beautiful  pair,  mounted  with  silver  and  elegantly 
engraved, as  a  present  from  some  friends.  I  wore  them  a  long  time; 
became  so  familiar  with  them  that  I  esteemed  them  old  friends,  and 
when  I  came  to  love  them  best  I  lost  them !  They  were  stolen  from 
my  hotel  room  in  the  Christian  city  of  Chicago,  upon  a  bright  Sabbath 
day  Avben  the  sound  of  the  church  bells  was  still  lingering  upon  the 
air  and  I  was  wending  my  way  toward  a  Christian  tabernacle.  I  used 
to  look  at  them  sometimes  with  a  most  anxious  ^^e,  when  afar  off  in 
the  "  Indian  country  "  and  wonder  if  I  should  ever  be  called  upon  to 
put  them  to  such  a  homicidal  use. 

The  seat  of  honor  on  a  stage-coach  was  beside  the  driver.  Some- 
times you  would  strike  "good  company,"  but  more  frequently  a 
"  post."  These  drivers  generally  were  personages  of  great  importance, 
clothed  with  much  authority  and  filled  with  consummate  pride.  They 
were  conscious  of  vast  superiority  over  the  "  pilgrims  "  who,  through 
favoritism  of  the  station  agent,  obtained  on  the  waybills  a  seat  by  his 
side,  and  seldom  would  deign  a  reply  to  any  of  the  foolish  questions 
so  often  propounded  by  the  traveling  querist.  There  were  others, 
however,  without  the  "  mulish  "  propensity — gentlemen  in  every  sense 
of  the  word,  who  retained  their  good  breeding  even  amid  those  soli- 
tudes of  the  savage  and  the  rude  elements  that  formed  the  civilization 
of  a  wild  frontier  town. 

I  shall  always  remember  my  ride  upon  the  stage-coach  between 
Julesburg  and  Denver,  not  alone  because  of  the  excitement  attendant 
upon  an  expected  "  brush  "  with  the  Indians,  but  because  of  its  fresh 
and  invigorating  experience,  the  long,  wUd  swing  of  the  coach  u|X)n 
the  road,  the  bracing  atmosphere  of  the  early  autumn  month  that  sent 
the  blood  through  our  veins  with  life  and  health,  and  that  indescriba- 
ble state  of  buoyant  feeling  that  always  attends  the  first  exjjerience  of 
an  adventurous  career. 

I  found  the  driver  of  our  coach  to  be  a  gentleman  full  of  experi- 
ence of  this  wild  life  upon  the  border,  and  willing  to  relate  its  exciting 
scenes  and  incidents.  And  thus  between  the  watch  for  "  Indian  signs" 
and  the  blood-curdling  tales  of  the  driver,  who  by  the  way  was 
no  Munchausen,  but  a  veritable  Indian  fighter,  having  but  the  year 


167 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  169 

before  lost  a  part  of  his  right  ear  and  several  fingers  from  the  shot  of 
a  savage  foe,  the  first  day  wore  away  without  a  single  adventure  of 
a  startling  character. 

About  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day  "  Indian 
signs"  became  plentiful  to  the  experienced  eye,  and  just  as  we  reached 
a  "  home  station,"  they  were  reported  by  the  station  hands  to  be  in 
considerable  force  all  around  us.  The  horses  were  coralled  in  a  short 
time,  and  the  coaches  so  arranged  as  to  afford  us  a  partial  shelter  from 
their  fire.  We  all  took  the  position  assigned  us,  and  in  as  brave  a  frame 
of  mind  as  our  total  ignorance  of  Indian  warfare  would  permit,  awaited 
the  attack  of  the  savages,  some  of  whom  could  be  seen  in  the  far  dis- 
tance engaged  in  the  Indian  pastime  of  "circling"  about  on  their  swift 
little  ponies.  A  scout  was  sent  out  to  reconnoiter  and  to  ascertain,  if 
possible,  the  extent  of  their  numbers,  but  returned  toward  evening 
without  having  accomplished  much  in  that  direction. 

We  expected,  however,  if  the  attack  was  to  be  made  at  all,  that  it 
would  occur  in  the  neighborhood  of  sunset  as  the  hours  of  both  sun- 
set and  sunrise  are  the  favorite  periods  for  an  Indian  attack.  Of 
course  we  were  all  on  the  alert,  and  having  fortified  the  "  inner  man" 
with  the  substantial  food  of  the  "home"  station,  were  in  good  trim  to 
meet  the  foe.  But  we  watched  in  vain.  One  by  one  the  stars  came 
out  and  filled  the  heavens  with  their  glory. 

Shining  in  order  like  a  living  hymn,  written  in  light. 

The  red  man  came  not  upon  his  murderous  mission.  I^or  did  he 
come  in  the  early  morning.  It  was  quite  probable  that  he  had  fully 
reconnoitered  us  ere  we  were  aware  of  his  approach,  and,  finding  us 
too  strong  for  his  numbers,  had  "  circled ''  around  a  few  hours  in 
our  sight  for  his  own  amusement,  and  then  betaken  himself  off  to 
await  the  coming  of  a  weaker  party.  We  did  not  regret,  however, 
his  failure  to  attack.  We  were  not  thirsting  for  gore;  we  merely 
wished  to  be  "let  alone."  In  the  morning  both  the  skies  and  the  field 
being  clear  we  again  started,  after  a  splendid  breakfast  of  cornbread 
and  antelope  steak,  and  gayly  sped  along  over  the  smooth  hard  road  of 
the  broad  Colorado  plains. 

I  could  not  fail  to  dwell  upon  the  lonely  life  of  those  we  left 
behind  at  the  station,  and  wonder  how  their  lives  were  preserved 
amid  such  constant  peril.  These  stations  were  sometimes  besieged  for 
days   by  the  Indians  in   the  hope  of  capturing  their  inmates  and 


170  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

personal  property.  They  were  usually  built  of  strong  material,  some- 
what after  the  fashion  of  a  fort,  and  when  the  doors  were  securelv 
fastened,  their  inmates  could  make  a  strong  and  usually  a  successful 
defense  by  filing  at  the  enemy  through  loopholes  arranged  for  such 
a  purpose,  Tha  Indians  possessed  a  wholesome  dread  of  such  an 
encounter  and  kept  out  of  range  of  the  unseen  but  unerring  bullet. 
Their  hope  of  capture  lay  in  the  night  attack  when  their  stealthy 
approach  could  not  be  observed.  At  such  a  time  their  chief  effort 
would  be  an  attempt  to  set  fire  to  and  burn  the  ranch.  In  this  they 
were  sometimes  successful,  and  the  Ijrave  defenders  would  either 
perish  at  their  posts  or  meet  the  barbarous  fate  reserved  for  them 
by  those  blood-thirst}'  monsters  whose  chief  delight  consisted  in  tor- 
turing the  human  frame. 

I  shall  long  remember  the  first  conscious  hour  of  daylight  of  my 
visit  to  the  city  of  Denver,  Colorado.  It  was  two  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, a  very  dark  morning,  when  the  stage  in  which  I  was  a  passenger 
pulled  up  in  front  of  the  express  office  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Company, 
in  that  mountain  town,  after  the  exciting  ride  from  Julesburg. 

There  happened  among  our  passengers  on  this  trip  one  of  the  most 
genial  gentlemen  whom  it  was  my  good  fortune  to  meet  during  the 
whole  of  my  sojourn  in  the  Rocky  Mountains.  He  was  one  of  the 
bravest  of  spirits  who  had  stood  under  "  Indian  fire,''  and  one  of  the 
best  business  men  among  the  hosts  of  such  to  be  found  upon  the  plains 
at  that  early  date.  He  it  was  who,  as  agent  of  "Wells,  Fargo  &  Com- 
pany, first  conceived  the  idea  of  consolidating  the  two  overland  routes 
which  resulted  in  the  purchase  of  Ben  Holliday's  line  from  the  Mis- 
souri to  Salt  Lake  City,  thereby  creating  the  longest  and  best  appor- 
tioned and  disciplined  stage  mail  line  in  the  world.  I  refer  to  Colonel 
James  J.  Tracy,  general  superintendent  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Company's 
Overland  Mail  and  Express  Line.  He  had  formerly  been  a  successful 
merchant  in  the  city  of  New  York,  but  went  down  in  the  financial 
slaughter  that  began  with  the  human  slaughter  of  the  late  war,  in  the 
loss  of  several  hundred  thousands  of  dollars  of  "  Southern  credits." 

He  took  up  the  burden  which  relentless  fate  had  thrown  at  his 
feet,  and,  from  wealth,  ease  and  affluence  in  the  great  metropoUtan  city 
of  the  East,  ascended  to  the  grandeur  of  a  new  and  more  complete 
manhood  which  he  discovered  within  himself  amid  the  perils,  hard- 
ships and  vast  business  demands  of  his  new  calling  in  the  frontier  life 


ECHOES    FROil    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS.  171 

'of  the  far  West.  Our  relations  made  us  intimate  friends,  and  I  came  to 
know  him  well  and  to  read  and  understand  his  "  inner  nature."  He 
has  passed  over  the  great  divide. 

The  gentle  wafting  to  immortal  life  made  him  again  a  pioneer  to 
•open  the  way  to  fairer  plains  for  those  he  left  behind;  to  smooth  the 
rugged  paths  and  break  the  bars  of  terror  nature  throws  across  them. 
If  there  be  broad  plains  and  lofty  mountains  in  that  other  life  over 
which  pilgrim  bands  must  journey  with  a  leader  toward  the  celestial 
city,  I  doubt  not  he  has  found  his  mission  in  the  continuance  of  his 
mighty  work.  Friend  of  the  wilderness,  it  was  a  shining  memory 
that  came  in  your  dying  moments  and,  like  the  bright  sunshine  that 
breaks  across  the  hills  at  the  close  of  a  stormy  day,  gilded  with  glory 
the  closing  hours  of  your  stormy  life.  "  We  will  push  on  to  the 
rescue ! " 

It  was  to  the  thoughtful  care  of  the  superintendent  that  we  were 
indebted  for  the  warm  and  comfortable  quarters  we  immediately 
turned  into  on  our  arrival.  He  had  telegraphed  ahead  of  us,  and  the 
clean  white  beds  awaited  us  in  well-lighted  rooms  over  the  office  at 
that  unseasonable  hour.  A  number  of  us  agreed  to  meet  in  the  morn- 
ing and  breakfast  together.  I  was  the  first  to  awake,  and  it  was  the 
sound  of  a  church  bell  that  awakened  me !  It  was  the  Sabbath  day, 
and  the  bright  sun  was  shining  merrily  through  the  window  panes.  I 
arose  quietly  and  strolled  out  to  take  a  morning  view  of  the  historic 
town  by  "  the  holy  waters  of  Cherry  Creek." 

It  was  about  eleven  o'clock  when  I  reached  the  heads  of  Larimer 
and  Ilolliday  streets,  and  gazed  with  wonder  and  delight  upon  this 
*'  City  of  the  Hills,"  and  I  stood  upon  the  summit  of  the  hench  and 
counted  the  gilded  spires  of  five  churches.  I  looked  down  the  long 
thoroughfares  of  trade  and  business  activity  and  enterprise,  and  off 
upon  the  beautiful  homes  on  the  highlands  skirting  the  magical  town, 
and  could  not  but  dwell  upon  the  grandeur  of  the  race  which  in  half 
a  decade  had  converted  the  mining  camp  of  a  rocky  wilderness  into  a 
city  of  trade  and  inland  commerce  with  all  the  beatitudes  of  civiliza- 
tion. I  could  not  but  dwell  upon  the  fact  that  only  a  little  while  ago 
and  Denver,  the  Christian  city  of  Denver,  was  as  deep  in  the  depths 
of  crime  and  as  dark  and  polluted  as  the  wicked  Julesburg  which 
flaunted  its  scarlet  crimes  in  open  daylight.  There  were  now  borne  upon 
the  air  the  sweet  songs  of  the  Christian  Sabbath,  and  men  and  women 


172  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOrXTAINS. 

ancoyered  their  heads  and  boued  in  prayer  in  the  holy  tabernacles  of 
the  Lord  where  but  a  few  years  before  the  gambler  openly  plied  his 
trade ;  the  dance-house  and  the  saloon  gathered  their  votaries ;  the 
wanton  "temporizing  with  decay  "  threw  wide  open  the  doors  of  her 
gilded  den ;  the  auctioneer  cried  out  with  leathern  lungs  his  bogus  wares, 
and  every  store  in  the  town  on  the  Sabbath  contracted  and  carried  on 
more  business  than  upon  any  other  day  of  the  week.  Upon  the  Sab- 
bath the  miners  left  their  claims  and  gathered  in  the  town;  to  each  and 
all  it  was  a  gala  day.  Drunkenness,  brawls  and  street  fights  became 
the  amusement,  and  murder  lifted  its  red  arm  and  smote  the  peace  and 
order  of  the  community.  But  civilization  brought  thither  a  finer  feel- 
ing; order  arose  from  chaos  and  blcKxlshed;  refinement  appeared  with 
the  wives  and  daughters  of  the  pioneers  who  came  like  angels  to  create 
homes  from  haunts  of  vice — the  light  of  love  banished  the  mildew  and 
rot  of  depravit\%  and  a  better  manhood  dawned  instantly  upon  the 
"brave  rouffh  diamonds"  of  the  mines.  The  church  came  with  the 
bold  missionary,  for  he  was  the  bravest  of  them  all,  and  then  the 
school-house  and  the  court-house  weeded  out  the  dance-house,  and  the 
forlorn  outcast  sought  some  "  Poker  Flat "  farther  on  in  the  race  of 
life  until  disease  and  dissipation  entombed  her  ghastly  shadow.  Of 
course  there  was  a  broad  and  deep  gulch  between  the  Sunday  rattle  of 
the  auctioneer  and  the  sweet  chime  of  Sabbath  bells,  and  in  the  rude 
elements  of  frontier  society  the  violence  of  the  "  bad "  was  often 
checked  by  the  violence  of  the  "good  I  "  The  long  outspreading  limb 
of  the  historic  tree  that  grew  by  the  side  of  the  historic  stream  beneath 
the  shadow  of  the  "  sentinel  peaks  *'  of  the  Snowy  Range,  had  much  to 
do  as  a  civilizing  agent,  with  the  peace  and  order  of  the  community, 
and  the  perturbed  spirits  of  many  outlaws  who  dangled  from  the  oaken 
bough  stiU  haunt  the  superstitious  who  dwell  hard  by.  Such  was 
Denver  in  the  early  day  of  the  pioneer  and  hard-working  and  hard- 
drinking  miner,  and  such  again,  when  Christian  refinement  had 
uprooted  the  gnarled  and  twisted  growth  whose  roots  had  first. struck 
into  the  virgin  soil. 

The  Denver  of  to-day  is  a  familiar  figure.  Steam  has  annihilated 
space  and  it  lies  at  our  doors.  It  is  a  bright  inland  town  of  trade  and 
commerce,  the  commerical  and  political  center  of  the  young  but  rich 
State  of  Coloratlo,  with  many  manufactories,  a  United  States  mint,  and 
various  public  buildings,  with  a  population  verging  upon  a  hundred 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  173 

thousand,  while  a  stream  of  emigration  continues  to  pour  in  over  the 
four  conjunctive  railroads,  adding  constantly  to  its  internal  strength 
and  prosperity.  Yes ;  there  sits  the  Denver  of  to-day,  the  Queen  of  the 
Foothills,  within  the  shadow  of  the  Great  Snowy  Range,  proud  of  her 
people  and  worthy  of  her  renown ;  and  yet  in  1858  there  was  not  a 
human  habitation  in  her  vicinity. 


CHAPTER  Xn. 

THE  CITY  OF  DEXTER  —  PIKE'S  ?EAK  — GARDEN  OF  THE  GODS  —  WILLIAMS 
CA5'0X  — THE  GUX-BARHEL  ROAD  — SXOWT  RAXGE— LOXG'S,  GRAY'S  AND 
PIKE'S  PEAKS  — BOULDER  CITY  AXD  BOULDER  CAXOX  — THE  WOXDERFTL 
SOUTH  PARK -THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  ARKAXS AS  — FOSSIL  FOOTPRIXTS  — THE 
SCIENCE  OF  ICHNOLOGY  — THE  ROAD  TO  CHETEXNE  — SCEXES  OF  IXDIAN 
^^OLEXCE-THE  BLACK  EMBERS  OF  THE  HOUSE,  AXT)  THE  STORY  OF  THE 
MURDER  BY  INDIANS  OF  A  PIONEER'S  FAMILY. 

Denver,  the  capital  of  Colorado,  is  located  on  the  South  Platte 
River,  at  the  eastern  base  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  nearly  5,500  feet 
above  the  sea,  and  occupies  a  series  of  levels  rising  gradually  toward 
the  mountains,  commanding  a  magnificent  view  of  the  proximate 
plains  and  the  peaks  of  loft}"  mountains  covered  with  perpetual  snow. 

It  is  surrounded  by  scenery  of  the  grandest  order.  For  a  hundred 
miles  the  most  romantic  and  picturesque  scenes  greet  the  eye.  Man- 
itou  Springs,  now  one  of  the  most  charming  of  popular  resorts,  lies  at 
the  foot  of  Pike's  Peak.  The  Garden  of  the  Gods,  a  vast  park  among 
the  hills,  is  filled  with  picturesque  rocks  and  cliff  formations  with 
sweeping  plains  intervening,  covered  with  luxuriant  verdure.  One  of 
the  most  interesting  of  natural  objects  is  the  Cave  of  the  Winds.  This 
you  approach  through  Williams'  Canon,  a  winding  driveway"  between 
towering  cliffs,  more  than  two  miles  long.  It  is  the  largest  cave  yet 
discovered  in  the  vast  range,  and  full  of  weird  interest  to  all  who 
enter  its  magical  depths. 

Half  way  between  Denver  and  Cheyenne  is  the  town  of  Greeley, 
named  after  the  great  founder  of  the  Xew  York  Tinbune,  whose 
admonition  to  all  young  men  was,  '*  Go  West ! "  Directly'  west  from 
Greeley  runs  the  famous  "gun-barrel  road,"  pointing  straight  to 
Long's  Peak,  fifty  miles  distant.  This  remarkable  road  stretches 
across  the  green  plains  for  a  dozen  miles  or  more  without  a  single 
curve.  The  story  is  related  that  immediately  upon  the  survey  being 
made  a  farmer  started  a  furrow  with  his  plow  and  kept  it  aU  the 
distance  in  a  straight  line,  turning  neither  to  the  right  nor  left. 
Over    this   "gun-barrel    road,"  on  your  way   to  Long's   Peak,  the 

174 


f  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  177 

magnificent  panorama  of  the  Snowy  Range  greets  your  eye.  Before 
you,  in  all  its  grandeur,  lies  this  lofty  range  with  its  eternal  snows 
glittering  in  the  sunlight  of  your  high  noon  as  they  have  glittered  in 
the  sunlight  of  centuries,  before  the  voice  of  man  had  broken  the 
silence  of  its  solitudes,  or  his  hand  carved  the  pathway  to  its  majestic 
heights. 

Boulder  City  lies  close  up  against  the  range.  It  contains  a  popu- 
lation of  several  thousand,  and  possesses  buildings  of  note,  chief  of 
which  is  the  State  University,  but  its  principal  attraction  is  the  far- 
famed  "  Boulder  Caiion."  The  tourist,  overjoyed  to  be  permitted  to 
revel  in  the  glory  of  its  beauty  and  sublimity,  enters  the  canon  a  little 
beyond  the  city,  upon  a  road  that  winds  about  for  many  miles.  A 
crystal  stream  of  diminutive  cataracts  flows  on  and  on,  amid  its  rocks 
and  shelves  in  wild  haste  to  reach  the  thirsty  plain  that  stretches  far 
beyond.  At  times  the  road  itself  seems  to  overhang  the  sk-eam,  and 
rude  bridges  formed  of  hardy  mountain  timber  are  thrown  across  from 
projecting  rocky  eaves,  and  lead  you  on  to  where  the  canon's  mighty 
walls  loom  up  2,000  feet  above  its  base,  seeming  to  rise  higher  and 
higher  toward  the  heavens  until  a  glimpse  of  blue  cloud  rolls  over 
your  head,  while  your  feet  press  the  wild  flowers  that  fleck  their 
mossy  beds,  mingling  majesty  with  the  tender  simplicity  of  nature's 
sweetest  offering. 

Half-way  between  Denver  and  the  "  Garden  of  the  Gods  "  is  the 
divide  which  separates  the  waters  of  the  Platte  from  the  Arkansas. 
South  of  this  divide  begins  the  monumental  uplifting  of  rocks  which 
increase  in  number  until  the  "garden  "  itself  is  reached,  where  the  eye 
is  greeted  by  the  grandest  display  of  these  weird  objects  formed  of 
quartz  and  pebbles  held  loosely  together  in  circular  condition,  tapering 
from  base  to  top,  over  which  rests  a  cap  of  rust-colored  sandstone, 
made  by  the  oxide  of  iron  which  forms  a  cement  binding  the  grains 
together.  The  smaller  of  these  monuments  vary  in  height  from  ten 
to  twenty  feet,  but  the  castellated  shafts  of  the  larger  table  buttes, 
surmounted  with  a  layer  of  purple  porphyritic  basalt,  rise  almost  per- 
pendicularly to  heights  ranging  from  100  to  250  feet  from  beautiful 
green  meadows  upon  which  the  glowing  rays  of  a  golden  sunset  fall 
with  a  peculiarly  impressive  beauty. 

The  wonderful  South  Park  covers  an  area  of  1,200  square  miles, 
with  an  elevation  rising  at  points  to  10,000  feet.     It  is  surrounded 

12 


178  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS.  | 

by  mountains,   and    has    at    one    time    been    the    bed    of    a    lake. 

The  valley  of  the  Arkansas,  cut  through  the  solid  granite  mount- 
ains, runs  for  100  miles,  ten  miles  wide,  presenting  the  finest  field 
for  glacial  study  and  observation  in  the  West.  The  masses  of  rock 
transported  by  this  tremendous  agency  often  reach  100  feet  in  diam- 
eter. Everywhere  mounds,  ridges,  basius  and  boulders  obstruct  the 
traveler's  pathwa3\  Worn  rock  is  also  exposed,  revealing  the  effects 
of  ice  on  the  surface.  Mineral  and  sulphur  springs  of  great  medicinal 
value  are  frequently  found. 

Pike's  Peak  was  discovered  by  General  Pike,  United  States  Army 
in  1806,  and  is  14,000  feet  high  and  commands  a  rugged  mountain 
view  of  100  miles  radius.  Here  gold  was  first  discovered  in  Colorado 
in  1858,  and  was  followed  by  that  remarkable  hegira  from  all  parts 
of  the  Union. 

During  the  first  four  years  succeeding  the  discovery  of  gold 
nearly  .$40,000,000  were  taken  from  the  mines.  It  was  the  beginning 
of  Denver's  growth  and  prosperity — this  great  camp  whose  foundation 
stones  were  laid  5,000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  with  its  toiling 
gold-seekers  delving  madly  for  sudden  wealth  I 

The  third  of  the  sentinel  peaks  of  the  lofty  Snowy  Range  is  Gray's 
Peak,  twelve  miles  distant  from  Georgetown,  one  of  the  principal 
mining  towns  near  Denver,  and  connected  with  it  by  a  railroad  run- 
ning: throuffh  Clear  Creek  Canon.  One  of  the  most  beautiful  sights  to- 
behold  in  this  land  of  wonders  is  the  morning  sunrise  from  its  summit. 
You  start  up  a  shady  glen  and  watch  the  rapidly  descending  stream 
and  listen  to  the  weird  song  it  sings  of  its  lofty  mountain  home  untQ 
you  reach  the  timber  line,  and  thence  on  your  path  lies  over  what 
appears  to  be  a  level  country  full  of  grass  and  flowers.  A  fair  valley, 
closed  in  by  two  low  rocky  walls,  you  now  traverse  searching  for  the 
lofty  peak  you  first  beheld  when  moving  upward  from  its  broad  base. 
Suddenly,  on  rounding  the  curve  which  has  obscured  your  vision,  the 
full  gXoTy  of  the  stately  heights  breaks  upon  you.  Before  you  stands 
a  mighty  wall  of  rock,  upon  whose  summit  it  would  seem  a  star  might 
nestle  in  the  night.  And  yet  up  its  steep  and  rocky  sides  the  hand  of 
man  has  carved  a  pathway  to  the  clouds  I  Here  romance  and  reality 
shake  brotherly  hands  over  the  divide.  Summer  and  winter  are 
locked  in  each  other's  arms,  A  July  sun  beats  down  upon  frigid 
snowbanks  and  not  a  tear  flows  from  the  warm  embrace.     There  is 


ECHOES  from:  the  rocky  mountains.  179 

no  "  melting  mood."  But  how  beautiful  are  the  variations.  Beds  of 
green  moss,  grass  and  wild  flowers  creep  up  to  the  snow  line  and  hide 
their  modest  heads  beneath  its  fleecy  folds.  At  Alpine  Pass  it  is  no 
unusual  thing  to  scrape  away  the  snow  of  the  sudden  storm  and  pick 
flowers  and  ripe  strawberries  from  green  vines  beneath.  Now  we 
begin  the  ascent.  Onward  and  upward  and  still  onward  and  upward 
we  go.  Our  steps  become  weary  and  our  breathing  painful  from  the 
light  air,  but  there  is  no  halt.  Onward  we  press  toward  the  summit, 
until  at  length,  exhausted,  we  stand  upon  the  expectant  heights  trans- 
fixed with  the  glory  of  the  panorama  that  stretches  before  us,  fifteen 
thousand  feet  above  the  sea  and  billows  of  mountain  peaks  below  !  Ko 
sound  amid  the  vast  soUtude  to  break  the  dead  silence  that  wrapped 
its  mantle  all  about  us.  Not  the  hum  of  an  insect  nor  the  ripple  of  a 
cloud  to  jar  the  solemn  stillness  of  that  meeting  of  man  with  his  Maker. 
If  night  should  settle  instantaneously  upon  us  could  we  not  reach  out 
ou.  hands  and  pluck  a  star  from  the  heavens  as  a  blossom  from  the 
tree?  And  still  the  awful  silence!  What  if  a  cannon  peal  should 
shake  the  mighty  depths  with  its  battle  roar  ?  How  it  would  rumble 
on  and  on,  far  down  in  the  depths  below  until  its  tumultuous  upheavals 
found  rest  and  repose  in  the  thunder's  home.  And  yet  grander  still 
would  be  the  artillery  of  heaven  amid  lightning  flashes  as  through  the 
riven  clouds  from  the  blasted  peak,  man,  the  mite,  should  look  up  and 
there  see  God ! 

Such,  indeed  is  the  grandeur  of  this  scene.  Memorial  Pisgah 
would  be  dwarfed  by  its  foothills.  And  what  a  majesty  of  trans- 
figuration !  Eastward  the  vision  ranges  unbroken  over  a  line  of  sixty 
miles  of  mountain  peaks.  What  a  vista  for  the  eye  of  man,  and  how 
diminutive  he  seems  as  we  view  far  down  below  the  dark  line  pro- 
jected along  the  distant  horizon,  so  dim  as  almost  to  be  undefined,  and 
know  that  it  is  the  outline  of  man's  abode,  the  level  plains  upon  which 
he  has  erected  his  earthly  penates  and  around  which  revolves  the 
cycle  of  years  in  which  he  has  struggled  in  vain  for  the  mastery  of 
life  over  death. 

But  not  alone  are  the  mountains  and  plains  of  the  far  West  objects 
of  interest  and  wonder  on  account  of  their  physical  grandeur  and  pic- 
turesque scenery,  and  the  vast  mineral  wealth  of  rock  and  soil  as  a 
field  for  the  employment  of  labor  and  capital,  but  likewise  as  a  fruitful 
domain  for  the  development  of  what  might  be  termed  an  occult  science, 


180  ECHOES   FROM   THE   EOCKT   MOUXTAIXS. 

whose  richness  of  resource  depends  mainly  upon  minute  examination 
of  the  region  of  country  known  once  as  the  great  American  desert. 

It  is  believed  to  be  an  established  fact  thai  this  portion  of  the  con- 
tinent was  the  bed  of  an  immense  primeval  ocean.  There  are  many 
evidences  to  sustain  such  a  theorv.  The  nature  of  the  soil,  the  growth 
of  rude  vegetation,  the  wonderful  mineral  and  vegetable  deposits,  the 
clearly  defined  water  line  upon  the  mountains  plainly  marked  by  the 
unerring  shell  deposit — mountains  whose  peaks  once  clothed  with  ver- 
dure were  islands  of  the  sea;  and  finally  the  fossil  footprints  of 
amphibious  animals  that  came  up  out  of  the  water  to  mingle  with  other 
protoplasts  of  that  dim  period  of  existence  in  the  twiUght  of  the  earth's 
history. 

Engraved  upon  the  rocky  tablets  of  the  earth's  crust  we  find  the 
evidence  of  the  vegetable  life  of  remote  ages  in  the  innumerable  species 
of  fossil  ferns.  In  the  coal  measures  immediately  succeeding  the 
devonian  period  we  find  their  maximum  development  in  tree  ferns 
whose  immense  size  classify  them  as  companions  of  the  gigantic  Sigil- 
larias  and  Lejpidodendrons  whose  remains  are  found  together  in  the 
carboniferous  rocks. 

Likewise  in  the  stratified  rocks  known  as  fossihferous  strata,  we 
find  the  remains  of  animals  of  pre-historic  ages.  Sometimes  in  pleisto- 
cene beds,  the  organic  remains  are  but  slightly  altered.  Sometimes 
the  whole  organism  is  dissolved  and  carried  off  by  water  percolating 
the  rock,  and  its  former  presence  is  indicated  alone  by  the  cavity 
between  the  mold  of  its  outer  surface  and  the  cast  of  its  inner,  in  the 
rocky  matrix. 

The  actual  remains  of  the  hard  portions  of  the  animals  themselves 
are  the  materials  on  which  rest  most  of  the  knowledge  of  the  earth's 
earher  inhabitants,  but  of  many  animals  that  did  exist  we  know  noth- 
ing more  than  the  impressions  made  by  them  as  they  moved  over  the 
muddy  shores  of  those  silent  streams  that  slept  upon  the  bosom  of 
Time's  remotest  ages. 

To  the  science  of  ichnology  (or  that  of  footprints)  we  are  indebted 
for  any  knowledge  of  their  existence,  for  nothing  now  remains  but 
their  indurated  footprints  ujwn  the  rocks  of  their  own  life-period.  It 
carries  us  back  to  the  remotest  known  period  of  animal  life  upon  the 
globe.  It  presents  to  us  the  evidence  of  the  shore  wave  preserved  in 
the  ripple-mark  and  the  influence  of  the  sun's  heat  exhibited  in  surface 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  181 

cracks.  Frequently  it  unfolds  the  impression  made  by  a  passing 
hail  storm,  or  a  sudden  thunder-shower,  and  the  influence  of  a  single 
drop  of  I'ain ;  and  it  marvelously  reveals  from  the  form  of  the  cup- 
like depression  the  extent  of  the  little  breeze  that  blew  with  the  rain 
drop,  or  the  magnitude,  direction  and  velocity  of  the  gale  that  swept 
over  these  unknown  shores. 

Giant  birds  that  waded  in  the  sea,  crustacean  animals  that  swam 
in  shallow  water  with  bifurcated  tail  lashing  their  muddy  beds  ;  fish- 
like  reptiles  that  have  passed  into  an  unknown  identity ;  tiny  worms 
that  bored  into  their  clay  quarry;  great  claivfooted  tortoises  that 
passed  from  tidewater  across  an  estuary  periodically  in  search  of  food 
or  pleasure — all  are  made  known  to  have  existed  in  their  respective 
ages  by  tlieir  footprints  upon  the  muddy  shores  of  their  ancient  home 
streams. 

All  along  the  foot  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Denver  and  elsewhere,  are  immense  beds  of  red  sandstone,  the  slow 
accumulations  of  vast  ages,  when  the  whole  of  that  expansive  territory 
was  an  open  sea,  save  the  long  low  islands  which  in  that  remote  period 
formed  the  base  and  groundwork  of  the  present  lofty  mountain  ranges. 
Uplifted  with  the  mountain  was  the  red  sandstone  at  its  base — from 
two  to  three  thousand  feet  in  thickness,  formed  by  the  drifting  sands 
of  those  mighty  seas  swept  by  primeval  gales.  In  certain  places  almost 
every  layer  exhibits  ripple  marks  and  raindrop  impressions  like  the 
sunken  rings  with  raised  centers  observed  in  the  flagging  street  crossings. 

Besides  these  ripple  marks  and  raindrop  impressions  there  have 
been  found,  on  both  slopes  of  the  mountain  range,  the  footprints  of 
animals  whose  creation  was  hitherto  unknown.  In  the  neighborhood 
of  Denver  alone  some  fifty  of  these  footprints  have  been  uncovered 
and  presented  for  the  study  and  investigation  of  man.  Over  a  single 
slab  thus  obtained,  about  five  feet  long,  are  to  be  seen  nine  pairs  of 
tracks,  running  across  it  diagonally,  each  two  and  a  half  inches  long, 
with  a  stride  of  nine  inches  and  a  straddle  of  five  inches.  "Wonderful 
to  relate,  every  track  exhibits  but  one  apparent  digit,  which  ends  with 
a  claw,  and  in  some  of  the  tracks  the  digit  appears  to  be  three-jointed, 
while  the  ball  of  the  foot  is  deeply  impressed  and  round. 

Upon  another  slab,  taken  from  the  same  red  sandstone  formation, 
are  five  pairs  of  footprints  of  different  characteristics.  These  are 
much  larger,  evidently  belonging  to  an  animal  of  far  greater  proportion 


182  ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

physically,  the  forepart  of  which,  singular  to  relate,  is  rounded 
like  the  hoof-like  sea  weeds.  It  demonstratas  the  fact  no  hoofed 
animals  existed  in  that  age,  they  are  doubtless  the  footprints  of  claw- 
footed  panthers  roaming  on  these  vast  islands  in  search  of  prey. 

A  vast  number  of  tracks  have  been  found  existing  in  the  St.  Yrain 
beds  of  the  Snowy  Range.  They  are  the  molds  left  by  the  dissolNring 
of  chemical  salts,  and  hence  are  irregular  as  to  size  and  form,  but  of 
undoubted  origin,  as  the  footprints  of  a  large  growth  of  animal  crea- 
tion. Triassic  tracks  have  also  been  discovered  on  the  western  slopes 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  are  now  in  the  museum  of  Yale  College. 

In  the  Cretaceous  age  following  we  have  the  evidence  of  the  exist- 
ence in  the  old  Archipelago  of  the  Modern  American  Desert  of  vast 
monsters,  gigantic  lizards  and  marvelous  amphibians,  but  in  the  foot- 
prints of  the  preceding  age  we  are  given  the  evidence  of  the  existence 
of  an  animal  creation  that  once  inhabited  the  shores  of  old-time  seas, 
that,  together  with  the  animal  life  itself,  have  been  swept  away  from 
the  shores  of  time.  What  they  were,  whence  they  came,  and  where 
they  departed  are  matters  of  speculation  which  engage  the  earnest 
attention  of  great  naturalists  who  have  devoted  their  lives  to  the 
development  of  those  occult  sciences  which  relate  to  the  determination 
of  life  in  the  earth's  earliest  ages. 

After  a  stay  of  some  weeks  in  Denver  engaged  in  the  investiga- 
tion of  the  character  of  the  Overland  Mail  Service  and  the  depredations 
on  the  mail  routes  in  that  Territory,  I  started  with  a  well-armed  com- 
pany of  travelers,  including  the  general  superintendent  of  the  mail 
line,  in  a  Concord  coach,  for  the  site  of  the  new  town  of  Che3'enne, 
which  was  to  be  the  winter  terminus  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  for 
that  year.  "We  traveled  aU  day  long  in  full  view  of  the  majestic 
snowy  range  and  over  territory  that  had  been  blood-dyed  with  Indian 
violence.  Westward  from  the  line  of  our  road,  at  a  point  not  far  dis- 
tant from  where  the  town  of  Greeley  now  stands,  lay  the  charred 
embers  and  the  black  ruin  of  what  had  once  been  a  human  home 
smiling  in  the  wilderness.  The  home  of  a  pioneer  who  had  broken 
the  virgin  soil  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  lofty  range,  and  opened  the 
first  path  of  civilization,  by  the  side  of  a  singing  stream.  Here,  with 
his  wife  and  child  and  a  single  farm  hand,  he  had  driven  his  stake  and 
dwelt  in  fancied  peace  and  security.  Often  warned  of  Indian  treach- 
ery and   urged   to  abandon  the  location  for  one  nearer  the  larger 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIISTS. 


183 


settlements,  to  which  in  time  of  danger  he  might  retreat,  the  only 
answer  returned  to  such  expostulations  was  :  "  I  have  sought  my  home 
in  the  wilderness  from  choice.  I  am  perfectly  secure  from  Indian  vio- 
lence because  I  follow  the  paths  of  peace.  I  bestow  kindness  and  charity 
upon  the  Indians  who  chance  to  come  my  way,  and  I  have  faith  in 
their  gratitude !  "  And  thus,  deaf  to  all  entreaties,  he  lived  on  in  the 
wilderness.  The  wandering  red  man  found  food  and  shelter  within 
his  cabin,  and  he  tilled  the  soil  and  gathered  his  herds  and  flocks  about 
him.  Suddenly,  in  the  midst  of  this  fancied  security,  the  savage,  for- 
getful of  his  charitable  deeds,  fell  upon  and  smote  with  ruin  this  home 


%''''^^4^^>^%iJi 


THE    FARM-HAND'S  ESCAPE 
FROM  INDIANS. 


in  the  wilderness.  He  saw  the  flames  devour  the  roof-tree  his  own 
hands  had  built  to  shelter  wife  and  child ;  he  saw  the  savage  brain  his 
innocent  offspring,  whirling  it  as  a  club  by  its  little  limbs;  he  saw  his 
wife  brutally  assaulted  by  the  red  demons  who  had  her  captive,  and 
then,  amid  her  screams  and  supplications,  scalped,  stripped  of  her 
clothing,  hung  by  her  limbs  and  a  stake  sharpened  at  the  end  driven 
longitudinally  through  her  body.  The  extreme  refinement  of  savage 
cruelty  and  torture  he  beheld  reserved  for  himself.     The  cries  and 


184  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

groans  of  his  wife  having  passed  away  with  her  spirit,  he  now  watched 
with  agonized  interest  the  preparations  for  his  own  anguish.  He 
beheld  the  stakes  driven  securely  in  the  ground"^o  which  he  was  to  be 
bound  and  roasted  by  a  slow  fire.  He  saw  the  savages  bring  thither 
the  fagots  for  the  funeral  pile,  and  all  the  preparations  made  for  the 
wild  dance  and  orgies  that  should  accompany  his  groans  and  torture. 
Then,  scalped  and  stripped  of  clothing,  he  was  hurled  by  fiendish 
hands  ujjon  the  ground;  he  was  firmly  bound  to  the  driven  stakes  and 
a  fire  kindled  upon  his  bowels,  and,  amid  dance  and  howl  and  demo- 
niac laughter  and  his  own  heart-rending  cries,  his  entrails  were  slowly 
consumed. 

In  the  meantime  a  score  of  Indians  had  guarded  the  farm  hand 

who,  witnessing  these  horrible  atrocities   upon  his  helpless  friends, 

determined  to  escape  or  die.     Overcome  by  their  savage  instincts,  one 

by  one  his  captors  left  to  join  in  the  revolting  death-dance  until  but 

a  single   savage  remained   on   guard.      Seizing    his  opportunity  he 

instantly  despatched  him  with  a  bludgeon  that  fortunately  was  at 

hand,  and  mounting  the  nearest  Indian  pony,  drove  his  rowels  deep 

in  the  animars  flanks  and  began  the  race  for  life,  heading  toward  the 

river  which  he  reached  and  crossed  before  the  savages  could  get  well 

under  way.     Fortune  had  favored  him  or  he  too  would  have  been  lost, 

and  none  have  remained  to  teU  this  tale  of  horror.    He  chanced  to 

mount  the  fleetest  pony  of  the  band,  and  the  beast  maddened  by  the 

spurs  deeply  driven  in  its  body,  plunged  forward  with  all  the  speed  it 

possessed.     With  wUd   yells  the  savages  pursued  him,  chagrined  to 

lose  their  pony  and  dashed  madly  in  the  chase  whose  end  was  a  human 

life.     In  the  beginning  they  were  close  upon  his  track,  but  gradually 

the  distance  widened,  and  night's  shadows  falling  early   from  the 

approaching  mountain  heights,  he  made  good  his  escape,  and,  gaining 

the  city  of  Denver  at  midnight,  narrated  the  tale  of  horror.    A  strong 

band  of  stalwart  men  were  in  the  saddle  and  on  the  trail  ere  the 

morning's  dawn  to  avenge  the  horrible  deed.     Before  high  noon  the 

whites  had  reached  the  scene  of  the  terrible  butchery  and  gathered 

and  buried  the  frail  remnants  of  humanity,  the  shrunken  shreds  of 

human  flesh  that  remained  from  flame  and  torture,  the  charred  bones 

found  among  the  embers,  and  the  body  of  the  little  babe  whose  face 

had  opened  so  suddenly  upon  the  early  morning  of  life  eternal  in  the 

land  of  song  and  flowers. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


185 


Through  such  savage  tortures  and  rapine  were  the  early  paths  of 
civilization  in  the  far  West  opened.  It  is  the  maxim  of  the  Christian 
world  to-day  that  "  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  the  church." 
As  the  traveler  approaches  the  city  of  Rome  his  gaze  is  first  attracted 
by  the  lofty  spire  of  the  Cathedral  erected  by  the  Christian  nations  of 
the  earth  in  commemoration  of  the  early  martyrs  of  the  church.  It  is 
said  to  stand  upon  the  very  spot  where  the  ancient  Roman  circus  stood, 
within  whose  arena  the  inhuman  emperor  cast  the  despised  Christians 
to  be  torn  in  pieces  and  devoured  by  ravenous  wild  beasts.     It  towers 


-      MARTYR   PIONEER. 

above  all  other  objects  of  the  Seven  Hills.  If  you  enter  Rome  by  way 
of  the  Gate  of  the  Arch  of  Titus  and  stop  to  gaze  upon  the  inscriptions 
and  designs  carved  upon  its  broken  columns  and  fallen  friezes,  those 
heralds  of  Hebrew  captivity,  the  lofty  dome  of  St.  Peter's  rises  before 
you.  If  you  wind  your  way  through  the  by  paths  of  the  Palatine  and 
over  the  crumbling  ruins  of  the  temples  of  the  Caesars,  or  hard  by  the 
bar.ks  of  the  yellow  Tiber,  its  lofty  spire  silvers  in  the  sunlight  as  it 
kisses  the  clouds. 


186  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKT    MOUXTAIXS. 

And  so  has  the  mighty  West  been  built  upon  the  blood  of  its  mar- 
tyrs. Upon  the  very  spots  where  many  of  its  pioneers  fell  from  barbar- 
ous torture,  stand  cities,  towns  and  settlements,  as  if  to  commemorate 
their  dying  struggles.  By  the  side  of  every  western  stream  and 
beneath  the  shadows  of  mountain  ranges  lie  also  their  unmarked 
graves.  On  the  plain  and  in  the  gorge,  on  mountain  top  and  deepest 
canons  they  fell  stricken  by  wild  beast  and  barbarous  savage,  by  hard- 
ship, cold  and  starvation,  and  the  pillars  of  our  "Western  empire  lie  in 
their  lowly  graves.  They  have  a  temple  for  their  sepulture,  grander 
far  than  proud  St.  Peter's.  Its  dome  is  the  bending  heavens,  its  pave- 
ment stones  the  kingdoms  planted  by  their  blood  and  heroism,  its  altar- 
candles  the  watching  stars. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  MIDNIGHT  SUPPER  AND  DANCE  AT  LA  PORTE  — THE  PRAIRIE  ON  FIRE  — 
RIDING  THROUGH  THE  "WAVE  OF  FLAME"  — ARRIVAL  AT  CHEYENNE- 
PRIMITIVE  POSTOFFICE  — THE  STORY  OF  THE  "LAWYER'S  OFFER  AND  THE 
JUSTICE'S  JURISDICTION  "-SUDDEN  ILLNESS  AND  THE  DOCTOR'S  INTER- 
VIEW-ORDERED TO  BE  BLED  — DALE  CREEK  AND  DALE  VALLEY  IN  SUMMER 
AND  WINTER -CHANGE  — MAGNIFICENT  PANORAMA  OF  MOUNTAIN  AND 
VALLEY -MORNING  DAWN  IN  THE  MOUNTAINS. 

On  our  way  to  Cheyenne,  after  dark  one  night  we  approached  the 
home  of  a  settler  upon  the  beautiful  mountain  stream  of  La  Porte. 
As  we  reached  this  "  home  station,"  fifty  miles  distant  from  any  other 
home  upon  the  frontier  we  heard  the  inspiring  strains  of  the  music  of 
the  dance.  Could  it  be  possible  that  in  this  remote  spot  so  far  from  other 
human  habitations  a  score  or  two  of  stalwart  men  and  buxom  women 
had  gathered  for  the  enjoyment  of  the  dance  ?  True  it  was,  however, 
and  some  of  them  had  ridden  a  hundred  miles  to  participate  in  the  gay 
amusement.  It  was  indeed  an  unexpected  sight  to  behold  this  merry 
throng,  revelling  in  all  the  evolutions  of  the  dance,  in  the  very  heart 
of  the  wilderness,  the  men  clean  shaven  and  the  ladies  with  bright, 
fluttering  ribbons.  Care,  anxiety,  privation,  hardship  and  danger  were 
all  forgotten  in  that  hour  of  common  joy.  A  homogeneous  feeling 
made  all  akin  in  the  revival  in  the  far  West  of  a  home  custom  of  the 
East.  And  so  they  whirled  away  in  the  giddy  dance  with  all  the  old- 
time  happiness  and  joy  of  by-gone  days. 

We  were  tired  and  hungry  when  we  reached  this  "  home  station," 
and  our  order  for  supper  having  been  given,  the  music  ceased,  the 
merry  dancers  filed  out  of  the  room,  the  tables  and  chairs  were  replaced, 
and,  in  short  order,  we  were  served  with  a  splendid  supper  of  speckled 
mountain  trout,  juicy  steaks  from  the  white  tailed  deer,  steaming  bis- 
cuits from  the  oven,  fresh  butter,  and  many  other  delicacies  very  grate- 
ful to  the  sight  and  palate  of  a  half  score  of  hungry  men,  whose  blood 
had  been  quickened  and  appetites  sharpened  by  the  fresh  mountain 
air.    Ere  long  the  dance  was  resumed,  and  as  our  coach  rolled  on  in  the 

187 


188 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUXTAINS. 


dark,  it  was  accompanied  by  the  strains  of  music  that  grew  fainter  and 
fainter  until  they  died  awav  in  the  distance. 

About  day  break  we  met  an  advancing  column  of  fire  from  the 
short  buffalo  grass,  which,  thoroughly  sun-dried,  burned  rapidly  and 
sent  forth  at  intervals  dense  clouds  of  smoke.  Choosing  a  point  where 
the  grass  was  low  and  the  body  of  the  flame  corresponding,  we  passed 


ESCAPE  FROM  A  PRAIRIE  FIRE. 

safely  through  without  material  damage  to  man  or  beast.  It  was,  how- 
ever, an  interesting  sight  to  behold  the  long  line  o  flame  stretching 
for  miles  across  the  level  plains.  It  recalled  the  pictures  in  our  school 
books  of  the  burning  by  the  Indians,  of  the  \ongpamj}as  grass;  there 
was  wanting,  however,  to  complete  the  scene,  the  herds  of  plunging 
buffalo  and  other  wild  animals  of  the  plains  engaged  in  the  terrible 
race  for  life  from  the  devouring  element. 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  189 

As  the  day  advanced  we  beheld  in  the  far  distance  what  appeared 
to  be  a  speck  upon  the  horizon.  As  we  approached,  it  assumed  the 
aspect  of  the  white  wings  of  motionless  animals.  They  were  the 
white  tents  of  the  embryo  city  of  Cheyenne — mere  dots  upon  the  vast 
plain.  They  were  the  advance-guard  of  the  army  which  shortly 
aj)peared  and  laid  the  foundation  of  the  capital  city  of  the  new  Territory 
of  Wyoming.  At  that  time  there  were  not  more  than  a  dozen  tents, 
and  yet  the  "new  city"  wore  an  aspect  of  business.  Wells,  Fargo  & 
Company  had  located  upon  a  prominent  corner,  another  tent  covered 
the  United  States  postoffice,  a  third  was  a  newspaper  oflBce,  while  the 
others  served  as  stores,  saloons  and  places  of  commercial  resort,  not  to 
forget  that  of  the  justice  of  the  peace,  whose  jurisdiction  was  boundless 
amid  the  wilds  of  this  Western  civilization.  He  would  hear  and  decide  a 
case  in  equity  or  on  the  law  side  of  the  court  with  as  much  composure 
and  firmness  of  purpose  as  if  he  was  sitting  and  presiding  as  Chief 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Territory.  And  I  do  not  under- 
take to  saythat  some  of  his  decisions  were  not  of  as  high  an  order, 
although  brief  and  of  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  Jeffrey's  type,  and  would 
take  equal  rank  with  the  best  efforts  of  some  of  those  who  held  a  much 
higher  appointment  in  the  early  jurisprudence  of  the  Territories. 

The  taste  of  those  wedded  to  refinement  in  all  things  Avould  have 
been  seriously  shocked,  by  a  glimpse  at  the  internal  arrangement  of 
the  Cheyenne  postoffice  at  that  early  day.  I  frequently  visited  it 
subsequently,  when  it  was  sumptuously  furnished,  when  the  town  of 
phenomenal  growth  had  attained,  within  six  months,  a  population  of 
10,000,  and  the  postmaster  rejoiced  in  a  salary  of  $3,000  per  annum. 
But  at  the  period  of  which  I  speak,  the  office  was  a  little  wall  tent  and 
the  furniture  a  deal-box  split  in  two,  one  half  resting  upon  the  upturned 
end  of  a  second  box  of  like  character,  and  partitioned  off  in  pigeon 
holes  of  rude  structure  with  the  refuse  lumber  of  the  broken  box. 
Yet  around  this  inelegant  structure  was  the  busy  hum  of  the  awaiting 
throng  for  the  little  rectangular  packages,  with  Uncle  Sam's  stamp 
affixed  thereto,  that  should  bear  to  them,  in  the  vast  wilderness,  news 
of  business  success  or  defeat  in  the  varied  departments  of  human  life 
and  exertion — news  from  the  great  world  behind  them,  with  all  its 
throbbing  industries  and  exciting  events,  or  words  of  cheer  from  loving 
hearts  at  home,  whose  electric  chords  of  affection  and  adoration 
stretched  from  Eastern  hearthstones  to  campfires  on  the  frontier. 


190 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUKTAIJS^S. 


I  had  not  been  long  in  the  town,  not  over  two  hours,  when  I  was 
approached  by  Judge  Miller,  who  became  subsequently  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  lawyers  and  politicians  in  the  Territory.  He  was 
engaged  as  counsel  for  a  distinguished  member  of  "  The  Societj'^  for  the 


POSTOFFICE  AT  CHEYENNE. 


Prevention  of  the  Public  Peace,"  who  in  the  exercise  of  his  high  func- 
tions had  skillfully  murdered  a  man  the  day  before,  and  now,  with 
plethoric  purse,  invoked  the  lawyer's  aid,  to  show  the  court  by  a  clear 
and  concise  analysis  of  certain  technical  points  of  the  law,  that  his 
honor's  court  was  of  limited  jurisdiction — that  he  could  not  try  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  191 

case,  and  consequently  should  discharge  the  prisoner!  The  argument 
on  the  jurisdiction  of  his  honor's  court  was  set  for  the  following  day? 
and  the  object  of  the  lawyer's  visit  was  to  retain  me  in  the  case,  agree- 
ing to  fairly  divide  the  fee,  which  was  $2,000.  This  may  be  considered 
a  large  fee  for  a  small  amount  of  work,  but  it  must  be  remembered 
that  in  those  early  days  lawyers  were  scarce  and  money  plentiful 
among  the  class  that  never  worked  for  a  living.  Besides,  it  resolved 
itself  into  a  philosophical  financial  question.  If  the  prisoner  should  be 
discharged  from  custody,  he  could,  by  going  upon  the  road,  retrieve  his 
fortunes  in  a  da}'^,  perhaps.  If  he  died  he  would  have  no  use  for 
the  material  mone}^  of  a  material  world.  His  spirit  would  soar  to 
those  spiritual  realms  where  all  good  murderers  go !  In  any  event, 
therefore,  it  was  best  that  the  money  should  go  into  the  lawyer's 
pockets,  and  in  it  went !  Of  course  I  should  have  been  untrue  to  every 
professional  instinct,  had  I  declined  the  generous  offer  of  this  brother 
in  the  wilderness.  I  agreed  to  help  him  divide  the  prisoner's  fortune. 
I  could  never  fully  realize  why  ill-fate  should  suddenly  overtake  me 
and  dash  this  golden  prize  from  out  my  grasp.  I  have  ofttimes  pon- 
dered upon  it,  but  never  clearly  solved  it.  At  least  not  entirely  satis- 
factorily to  myself.  All  day  long  I  thought  over  the  points  of  the 
argument  which  I  was  expected  to  make  upon  the  plea  to  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  court;  and  thought  how  romantic,  indeed,  it  would  appear 
to  stand  upon  this  spot,  far  out  in  the  wilderness,  where  an  Indian 
battle  had  raged  but  a  little  while  ago,  and  make  a  plea  in  the  interests 
of  peace  and  the  divine  rights  of  man. 

That  night  I  was  taken  violently  ill.  Previous  to  this  attack  I 
had  never  been  sick  a  day  in  my  life,  save  with  the  customary  diseases 
of  childhood  and  an  occasional  attack  of  cholera  and  small-pox 
during  the  war.  This  attack  was  something  new,  and  I  did  not 
understand  it.  I  was  in  such  pain  I  could  neither  lie  down  nor  sit  up,  so 
I  concluded  to  go  down  to  the  drug  store  I  had  noticed  at  the  newspaper 
office,  and  endeavor  to  obtain  some  relief.  I  approached,  stated  my 
symptoms  and  demanded  relief.  The  drug  man  looked  at  me  seriously 
and  said  :  "Young  man,  you  are  very  ill ;  you  must  be  bled !' '  In 
ancient  times  that  was  the  sovereign  remedy  for  all  ailments,  and  this 
drug  man  was  an  "ancient."  He  was  always  "good"  on  bleeding. 
He  resembled  his  prototype,  who  being  called  in  for  a  case  of  croup, 
remarked  that  he   did  not  know  much  about  croup,  but  he  could  give 


192  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUlfTAIXS. 

the  child  something  that  would  throw  it  into  fits,  and  he  was  h on 

fits.  As  I  had  never  been  '•  bled,"  save  in  a  p.^cuniary  way,  I  did  not 
know  how  to  proceed,  and  asked  to  be  directed.  He  peremptorily 
ordered  me  to  take  off  my  clothes.  I  promptly  obeyed.  He  and  an 
assistant  brought  a  large  tub  and  placed  it  behind  some  boxes  as  a 
screen  and  remarked  "  Get  in  there."  I  got  in,  thinking  how  novel 
was  the  proceeding,  and  wondering  what  next  would  be  done  to  "  bleed" 
me.  He  came  at  me  with  an  instrument  which  resembled  in  appearance 
half  a  dozen  little  sawblades  all  joined  together.  I  watched  with 
keen  interest  the  barbarous  device  and  thought  I  could  already  feel  its 
teeth  tearing  into  my  flesh.  The  next  instant  would  have  been  fatal, 
had  there  not  at  this  moment  opportunely  arrived  a  doctor  who  had 
come  into  town  to  start  a  newspaper.  He  called  a  halt  in  the  pro- 
ceedings, felt  my  pulse  and  asked  me  what  was  the  matter.  I 
explained  my  symptoms  as  well  as  I  could,  and  he  ordered  me  out  of  the 
tub,  told  me  to  go  to  my  tent  and  lie  down.  I  did  so,  and,  shortly  he 
came  with  a  preparation  of  opium,  etc.,  which  he  injected  forthwith 
near  the  seat  of  the  disorder.  Midnight  came  and  still  no  relief.  The 
pain  grew  more  and  more  severe  from  hour  to  hour.  The  doctor  gave 
a  second  injection  but  with  no  change  in  results.  It  was  perhaps  two 
o'clock  in  the  morning  when  the  doctor  again  made  his  appearance  and 
gently  inquired  as  to  the  state  of  my  health.  I  had  hung  my  revolver 
and  belt  just  over  my  head  upon  laying  down.  Frenzied  by  the 
intense  pain  which  had  not  ceased  a  single  moment,  and  believing 
I  should  die  if  not  soon  relieved,  I  hastily  puUed  down  the  revolver 
and  foolishly  threatened  to  shoot  him  if  he  did  not  immediately  relieve 
me.  He  was  a  brave  man  and  quietly  said :  "  I  will  do  so ! "  In 
fifteen  minutes  he  returned  and  gave  me  an  injection  which  wrapped 
me  in  profound  slumber  from  which  I  did  not  awaken  until  the  next 
afternoon.  I  arose  fully  restored,  although  somewhat  weak  from  the 
overpowering  pain.  Yet  the  pain  was  gone  and  I  felt  happy.  Thinking 
of  my  legal  engagement,  I  hurried  down  to  the  court-room  (or  tent) 
and  reached  there  in  time  to  witness  the  adjournment  of  the  court,  the 
prisoner  having  been  discharged.  I  got  no  part  of  that  fee.  I  received 
something  else,  however,  just  a  little  reminder  of  the  last  night's 
foolish  experience.  I  went  to  thank  the  doctor,  apologize  and  pa}^  my 
bill.  He  quietly  remarked  that  apologies  were  not  in  order  in  that 
country.     Said  he,  "  It  was  your  time  last  night,  it  is  mine  now,  your 


103 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOU:N'TAI]SrS.  195 

bill  is  $50  !  "  I  jmid  it  without  a  murmur  and  he  received  it  without 
a  smile.  I  said  before  parting,  "  Doctor,  will  you  tell  me  what  was 
the  matter  with  me?  I  never  endured  such  pain  in  my  life."  "Yes," 
he  said,  "  I  will  tell  a^ou  sir !     You  had  an  attack  of  Nephritic  colic." 

A  ride  across  the  plains  and  over  the  mountains  of  the  far  "West 
to-day  is  not  the  same  as  that  of  twenty  years  ago.  Seated  in  a  palace 
car  in  the  midst  of  the  luxuriant  ease  of  the  progressive  age  in  which 
we  live,  surrounded  by  all  the  comforts  and  enjoyments  of  home  life 
while  flying  on  at  the  rate  of  fifty  miles  an  hour,  we  do  not  comprehend 
the  magnificence  of  the  journey  across  whose  pathway  l^ature  has 
thrown  her  bars  of  terror,  or  smiled  in  the  simple  beauty  of  her 
flowered  landscape  and  rippling  waterfalls. 

How  glorious  is  the  pure  mountain  atmosphere  as  it  invigorates 
each  blood  cell  and  sends  them  coursing  through  our  veins  and 
arteries  !  Sitting  beside  the  driver  on  the  lofty  perch  of  a  Concord 
coach  or  the  secure  seat  of  a  "  mountain  hack,"  we  drink  in  the  glory 
and  the.  beauty  of  the  scene  as  nature  painted  them  in  cloud  and  land- 
scape, in  sunbeam  and  shadow,  in  sky  and  rivulet,  in  rock  and  rainbow, 
in  flowered  vale,  frosted  plain  and  snow-capped  mountain,  kissed  by 
the  floating  zephyr. 

The  old  overland  stage  road  ran  its  circuitous  route  through  a 
more  picturesque  country  than  the  present  line  of  railroad.  Some 
portions,  indeed,  were  the  \ery  picture  and  poetry  of  wild,  fascinating, 
soul-inspiring  scenery.  After  leaving  Cheyenne  the  gradual  slope  of 
the  mountains  began  in  the  lofty  Laramie  plains,  stretching  like  a 
greensward  in  every  direction  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  over  seven 
thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  And  here  a  magnificent  pan- 
)rama  greeted  our  vision.  To  the  southward,  far  beyond  the  line  of 
level  green  rose  the  Snowy  Kange.  Towering  above  all  the  rest  in 
their  majestic  grandeur,  stood  Long's,  Pike's  and  Gray's  peaks,  still 
kissing  the  clouds,  their  white  caps  mingling  with  the  blue.  Overhead 
the  bending  heavens  and  the  shining  orb ;  underneath  the  green  car- 
pet, and  over  all,  that  everlasting  stillness  that  rests  upon  those  lofty 
heights,  unbroken  by  the  whirl  of  a  leaf  or  the  hum  of  a  wild  bee. 
And  here  we  stood  and  gazed  enraptured  at  the  marvelous  works  of 
nature.  . 

The  Union  Pacific  Railroad  crossed  Dale  Creek  over  a  trestlework 
that  appeared  frail  indeed,  for  the  dizzy  depths   below  made  your 


196  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    iTOUNTAIXS.  V 

head  swim  as  you  gazed  momentarily  far  down  into  the  chasm  160 
feet  to  the  water,  as  the  tram  thmidered  over  the  trembling  rails.  And 
yet  they  were  firm  enough.  I  never  heard  of  an  accident  at  that 
point  of  the  road.  Before  the  construction  of  the  railroad,  the  old 
stage  route  wound  some  miles  farther  north,  and  Dale  Station  was  one 
of  singular  beauty.  We  reached  this  point,  which  was  a  "  home  sta- 
tion," about  two  hours  before  daybreak,  and  awaited  the  dawn  for  our 
breakfast.  What  a  glorious  scene  is  a  "  morning  dawn  "  in  the  mount- 
ains, with  its  pure,  fresh  and  invigorating  air !  And  of  all  places  in 
the  Rocky  Mountains  how  fair  was  the  morning  sunrise  in  this  lovely 
vale.  It  was  the  sweet  and  quiet  morning  of  an  October  day  when  the 
sun  began  to  sprinkle  and  drop  its  scintillating  rays  from  the  far-away 
snowcaps  and  had  sent  a  flood  of  light  shimmering  down  the  mount- 
ain sides,  awakening  the  sleeping  valleys  and  casting  glittering  beams 
in  the  pearly  depths  of  the  rainbow  waters.  Here  was  divinit}-  itself 
in  this  quiet  vale,  so  beautiful  that  it  seemed  as  if  God  in  pitj'  for  the 
blasted  peaks  had  for  an  instant  laid  His  hand  upon  it  and  made  it 
bloom  like  a  paradise,  among  the  mountains  brown  and  bare.  Its 
green  carpet,  interwoven  with  leaf  and  flower,  smiled  in  the  early 
mom.  They  were  the  flowers  that  Ophelia  could  not  give,  because 
they  had  all  perished  when  her  father  died.  Here  they  had  been  res- 
urrected and  embalmed  in  beauty  by  the  dews  and  the  sunshine  and 
God's  love,  filtered  through  cloud  and  sunbeam  from  those  portals  on 
high,  thi'ough  which  the  spirit  of  Polonius  had  passed. 

I  stood  by  the  sQver  stream  in  the  early  dawn  and  cast  my  line  in 
its  pellucid  waters.  Speckled  mountain  trout  were  my  reward,  and 
served  for  breakfast,  were  indeed  a  tempting  morsel  for  our  appetites. 
Shaded  by  the  tall  rocks  that  rose  high  overhead,  the  waters  of  this 
mountain  stream  retained  the  cool  temperature  of  the  loftier  heights 
from  whose  snowbanks  they  came.  Weeping  willows  fringed  their 
banks  and  dropped  their  dewy  tears  in  the  shining  depths  over  which 
they  hung.  Blossoms  from  the  wild  plum  had  in  the  springtime  shed 
their  aroma  upon  the  air,  but  the  blossom  had  blended  into  the  bud 
and  the  bud  into  the  fruit  and  impatient  hands  had  plucked  it  ere  the 
purple  gloss  had  grown  into  the  gold,  and  now  their  branches  were 
well-nigh  bare,  with  here  and  there  a  green  leaf  to  recall  the  happy 
springtide. 


TROUT   FISHING. 


197 


ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY  .  MOUNTAIN'S.  199 

No  frost  had  yet  appeared  with  blighting  breath  to  wilt  the 
tender  bud  or  dim  the  glory  of  the  full-blown  flower.  The  vine  of 
green  still  clambered  over  the  trellised  rock  and  caught  its  folds  among 
the  seams  and  scars  that  convulsive  nature  had  wrought  in  the  mighty 
throes  of  a  bygone  age.  All  was  yet  fresh  and  green  within  that 
sheltered  vale,  and  grass  blade,  bud  and  flower  were  just  as  vernal  and 
as  bright  and  beautiful  in  form  and  color  as  when  the  warm  breath  of 
early  summer  came  to  cheer  their  life  and  growth.  But  change  is 
written  on  all  things  as  an  inexorable  law  of  nature.  I  passed  this 
way  again  and  lo !  all  things  beautiful  were  blotted  out.  My  heart 
was  sad.  I  gazed  upon  the  wreck  the  elements  had  made  and  listened 
in  vain  for  the  song  of  the  stream.  It  too  had'  departed.  The  tall 
brown  cliffs  were  there  and  the  same  bending  heavens,  but  their  blue 
had  changed  to  sombre  cloud  from  which  the  frozen  raindrops  fell. 
The  ghosts  of  the  grove  were  there  also,  leafless  and  bare,  and  the 
drooping  willow  bent  beneath  its  frozen  weight.  The  green  carpet 
was  gone  and  not  a  single  flower  remained  to  tell  the  story  of  its 
bonnie  summer  life  in  a  mountain  dell.  We  asked  our  heart  to  tell  us 
why  this  sudden  change  from  life  to  seeming  death  ?  Our  thoughts 
were  echoed  on  the  air,  for  a  sweet  voice  beside  us  murmured : 

Why  do  the  winter  -winds 

So  mournfully  sigh  ? 
Why  do  the  leaves  all  fade 

And  flowers  die  ? 
Why  are  the  vine-clad  hills 

All  brown  and  bare  ? 
Why  are  the  rills  all  hushed 

In  mute  despair  ? 
Why  do  the  raindrops  fall 

From  sombre  cloud  ? 
Why  are  the  fields  all  clad 

In  silver  shroud  ? 
Why  doth  the  summer  die 

With  all  its  charms  ? 
And  droop  in  death's  pale  sleep 

In  autumn's  arms  ? 
And  golden  nut-brown  Autumn, 

Its  rivers  red 
From  vine  and  valley,  sleep  soft 

With  winter's  dead  ? 
Why  do  our  fondest  hopes 

Swiftly  depart, 


200  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

And  leave  a  rayless  gloom 

Within  our  heart  ? 
Why  do  our  loved  ones  steal 

Silently  away, 
Into  the  mystic  realm 

Beyond  our  day  ? 
*  *  *  * 

Swift  the  answer  came  from 

Each  bud  that  bloomed, 
From  all  we  love  and  cherish 

That  lie  entombed  : 
It  was,  that  death  may  point 

A  brighter  way 
To  all  we  love  on  earth. 

In  aidless  day  ! 


CHAPTEE  :e:IY. 

THE  JOURNEY  OVEli  THE  PLAINS- THE  SPIRITS  OF  MEDICINE  BOW  VALLEY- 
MEDICINE  BOW  STATION  — THE  SUBTERRANEAN  FORT  — THE  LAND  OF  ANTE- 
LOPES—ROCK SPRINGS  — THE  LONE  STATION  IN  THE  WILDERNESS  — THE  ICE 
WATERS  OF  THE  ALKALI  -THE  FRONTIER  TRADERS  WHO  LEFT  THEIR  GOODS 
TO  GAZE  UPON  THE  BEAUTY  OF  TWO  LADY  PASSENGERS  IN  THE  OVERLAND 
COACH -WASHAKIE,  THE  GOOD  CHIEF  OF  THE  BANNOCKS  — SOUTH  PASS  CITY 
—"MINER'S  DELIGHT  "-BATTLE  BETWEEN  SIOUX  AMD  BANNOCKS  — MINERS 
AID  WASHAKIE  TO  REPEL  THE  SIOUX  — THE  SIOUX'S  REVENGE  — MASSACRE 
OF  SETTLERS  IN  WYOMING. 

Medicine  Bow  Station  was  another  mountain  spot  of  beauty, 
similar  to  that  of  Dale  Creek,  although  not  quite  so  expansive.  It  was 
just  a  little  ribbon  of  a  valley  enclosed  by  tall  mountains.  A  perfect 
carpet  of  green  grass  —  greener  grass,  it  seemed  to  me,  I  never  saw 
elsewhere — was  spread  before  us,  and,  as  we  rolled  over  its  tender  sod, 
the  very  sound  of  the  wheels  of  the  great  Concord  coach  was  stilled 
by  the  soft  velvet  moss  with  which  there  could  be  no  rude  contact.  In 
the  springtime  or  early  summer  the  warm  rays  of  the  sun  melt  the 
snows  upon  the  summits,  and  large  and  small  streams  and  cascades 
pour  down  into  the  valley  from  every  direction.  This  was  the  spot 
where  the  spirits  of  the  mountains  gathered  in  council  to  formulate 
their  commands  to  the  winds  and  waters,  and  the  red  men  of  the 
plains.  Savage  legends  led  thither  the  tribes,  and  whenever,  on  the 
warpath,  they  seldom  failed  to  enter  the  depths  of  this  mystic  valley  of 
Medicine  Bow.  At  such  times  the  settlers  at  the  stations  would  perish 
miserably,  in  the  usual  barbarous  manner.  As  a  means  of  defense  and  a 
secure  place  for  retreat  on  the  approach  of  a  band  of  hostiles,  the  settlers 
and  stockmen  constructed  a  subterranean  chamber,  or  rifle  pit,  about 
fifteen  feet  square,  covering  it  securely  with  a  heavy  roof  of  earth  and 
sod,  leaving  open  a  space  of  four  or  six  inches  between  the  surface  of 
the  earth  and  the  lower  edge  of  the  roof,  for  air  and  light,  and  for  the 
purpose  of  viewing  and  picking  off  by  rifle  shots  the  marauding  Indians 
whenever  they  came  in  range  of  their  unerring  aim.  This  pit  was 
located  about  thirty  feet  from  the  entrance  to  the  station  and  stables 
of  the  stage  company,  and  was  reached  by  a  descent  through    the 

201 


202  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

floor  of  the  main  room  and  thence  through  a  subterranean  passage 
dug  from  station  to  ritle-pit.  Here  stores  of  all  kinds  were  constantly 
on  hand  ready  for  any  emergency  that  might  suddenly  arise,  and  the 
flight  of  the  settler,  after  barring  the  outer  doors  of  the  home  station, 
was  instantaneous  to  the  rifle-pit.  Once  gained  the  savages  were  at 
great  disadvantage.  An  unseen  foe  with  unerring  aim  drove  the 
deadly  bullet  through  their  brain  or  heart,  and  the  savage  would  fall 
without  the  power  of  resistance.  Having  full  range  of  station,  stock 
and  stable,  they  could  protect  them  while  preserving  their  own  lives. 
In  this  manner  they  could  hold  out  for  days  or  weeks,  and  repel  any 
assault  made  by  the  savages,  who  soon  learned  to  dread  the  fearful 
ambuscade  and  leave  the  whites  unmolested  in  the  peaceful  enjoyment 
of  this  beautiful  and  romantic  glen.  It  may  be  that  another  Irving 
will  come  with  marvelous  pen  to  paint  above  time's  mausoleum  the  story 
of  a  second  Rip  Yan  Winkle.  And  should  the  spirits  of  these  mount- 
ains gather  within  their  mystic  toils  the  drooping,  weary  form  of  a 
second  wandering  Rip,  may  his  heart  be  as  generous,  his  nature  as 
genial  and  his  long  sleep  as  peaceful  as  our  old-time  friend  of  the 
weird  and  secret  Catskills. 

Not  alone,  however,  was  this  valley  invaded  by  the  red  or  white 
man  bent  upon  good  or  evil  intent.  This  valley  with  its  green  carpet 
so  beautiful  to  our  eyes  —  attracted  by  the  luxurant  growth  of  so  rich 
and  succulent  vegetation — was  the  paradise  of  the  timid,  soft-eyed 
antelope.  Of  ttimes  we  had  seen  them  on  the  plains  and  in  mountain 
fastnesses  singly,  or  in  bands  of  five  or  six,  but  here  is  this  green 
mountain  dell,  this  oasis  of  the  mountain  desert,  this  paradise  of  green 
verdure,  whose  bloom  seemed  to  have  dropped  from  heaven's  portals 
—  here,  where  nature  had  spread  her  richest  feast  in  glorious  profu- 
sion and  every  trickling  mountain  stream,  every  dewdrop  from  the 
evening  clouds  and  every  ray  of  sunshine  sprinkled  from  the  battle- 
ments of  light  served  but  to  aid  the  rich  profusion  of  the  growth;  they 
came,  as  nature  intended,  in  flocks  and  herds.  As  our  coach  rolled 
away  from  Medicine  Bow  Station,  a  herd  of  a  hundred  or  more  were 
grazing  peacefully  withm  a  few  hundred  rods.  As  we  approached 
them  noiselessly,  the)'^  raised  their  timid  eyes  and  gazed  upon  us  with 
a  wondering  look.  The}'^  did  not  appear  to  comprehend  the  approach 
of  man,  their  mortal  enemy,  until  we  were  close  upon  them,  within  a 
few  feet  almost,  when  suddenly,  as  if  awakened  to  a  sense  of  danger, 


203 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  205 

they  swiftly  bounded  away,  and  with  the  fleetness  of  the  wind  crossed 
the  green  stretch  of  countr}'-  and  were  lost  within  the  rugged  defiles  of 
untrodden  mountain  passes. 

Our  lumbering  coach  rolled  on,  climbing  the  foothills  of  the 
mountains  that  environed  this  romantic  glen,  and  grass  and  rivulet 
faded  away  in  the  dim  distance  as  the  shadows  of  night  deepened  and 
fell  around  us.  But  the  silence  was  not  unbroken.  Through  the  dark- 
ness came  the  roar  of  mighty  waters  as  we  climbed  toward  the  source 
of  all  the  beauty  of  the  valley  we  had  so  lately  traversed.  "Why  were 
the  sounds  of  the  waters  so  mighty  here,  when  down  in  the  distant 
valley  they  were  singing  their  songs  of  peace  and  rippling  over  their 
white  beds  in  many  diverse  ways? 

The  fruitful  valley  was  watered  and  enriched  by  many  gentle 
streams.  Otherwise,  there  would  have  been  no  green  carpet,  no 
verdure,  no  beds  of  velvet  moss  therein  to  entrance  the  human  eye,  or 
feed  the  timid  antelope.  If  all  these  waters  had  rushed  upon  the 
valley  in  one  vast  stream,  the  earth  would  have  been  overwhelmed  by 
their  immensity,  and  the  green  valley  would  have  been  a  sea,  instead 
of  a  laughing  landscape. 

Thus  doth  nature  perform  her  greatest  works  in  her  most  simple 
ways.  Her  marvels  lie  in  her  solitudes  and  silence.  Within  her 
mighty  depths  unmoved  by  storm  or  convulsion,  lie  the  silent  forces 
that  have  molded  the  earth  for  the  use  of  man  in  the  divine  order  of 
his  being.  In  her  crucible  of  rocks  she  has  worked  her  marvelous 
miracles  of  minerals.  Little  by  little,  through  the  long  ages,  she  has 
molded  her  vast  coal  formations  from  the  gigantic  forests  that  waved 
their  sombre  branches  over  silent  seas  ere  the  morning  stars  had  sung 
their  songs  of  rejoicing  at  the  birth  of  man.  Beyond  that  primeval 
period  lying  back  of  the  misty  past,  before  the  years  that  lie  back  of 
the  ocean  of  time  —  back  of  the  lines  of  century  waves  which  blend 
beyond  the  horizons  of  remote  antiquity — before  history  was  born  or 
legend  had  painted  on  the  canvas  of  time  the  grandeur  of  departed 
ages,  before  the  walls  of  Damascus  had  risen  with  it  4,000  years 
of  hoary  antiquity,  or  the  foundations  of  Baalbec  had  been  laid, 
or  the  gates  and  spires  of  the  temples  of  Ephesus  and  Thebes  had 
shimmered  in  the  sunlight — these  ancient  mountain  walls  had  stood  as 
towering  sentinels  on  the  pathway  of  time,  crumbling  from  age  to  age 
to  enrich  the  sleeping  valley.     And  over  all,  then  as  now,  was  spread 


206 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKT    MOUXTAIXfi. 


the  quietude  and  calmness  of  that  unruffled  nature  which  overawes 
man's  tiny  doubts  and  fears  as  seen  in  the  pulseless  clouds,  the  serene 
sky  and  the  quiet  clustering  stars,  and  gives  to  ever}-  time  and  season 
some  beauties  of  its  own,  and  marks  its  changes  with  such  a  gentle 
hand  that  we  can  scarcely  note  their  pn)gress. 


""^"^m 


THE  LONE  STATION  IN  THE  WILDERNESS. 


Rock  Springs  was  a  station  at  which  we  halted  for  an  hour,  on  the 
old  overland  stage  road  that  was  noted  for  its  marvelous  supply  of 
pure,  cold  water.  It  was  at  once  a  gratifying  yet  singular  natural 
development  that  puzzled  the  scientist  as  well  as  the  nide,  unlearned 
frontiersman. 


ECHOES  FKOM   THE    KOCKY   MOUNTAINS.  207 

Here,  in  the  midst  of  a  vast  alkali  plain,  so  completely  saturated 
with  potash  and  soda  that  the  color  of  the  earth  was  the  same  as  that 
of  whitewash,  and  in  whose  soil  but  the  rudest,  toughest  and  most 
fibrous  growth  of  vegetation,  such  as  the  sage  bush  and  the  grease 
wood  survived ;  here,  not  far  distant  from  the  stream  called  "  Bitter 
Creek,"  whose  acrid  waters  running  through  the  arid  soil  so  absorbed 
its  alkaline  properties  as  to  render  it  useless  for  man  and  beast  —  a 
single  draught  inflaming  the  tongue  and  palate ;  yet  here  in  this  vast 
region  of  desert  was  a  spring  of  pure  fresh  water,  so  cold  as  to  resemble 
ice  water  and  with  as  grateful  and  sweet  a  taste  as  that  of  a  mount- 
ain spring  trickling  from  its  ice  rocks  and  beds  of  frozen  snow. 

At  this  spring  two  frontiersmen  had  built  a  primitive  fort  and 
surrounded  it  by  a  stockade  with  loop  holes  through  which  to  repel 
an  Indian  assault.  As  each  coach  load  of  passengers  would  gladly 
alight  and  linger  about  the  waters  of  this  refreshing  spring,  the  enter- 
prising men  had  located  a  stock  of  goods  for  the  traveling  public,  con- 
sisting chiefly  of  wine,  whisky,  cigars,  tobacco,  pipes,  and  a  few  other 
articles  of  prime  necessity  to  parties  journeying  through  the  vast 
desert. 

The  life  of  these  men  was  necessarily  a  very  lonesome  one.  They 
were  compelled  to  be  always  present  to  protect  their  wares  not 
onl}^  from  assault  by  savage  tribes  but  likewise  from  that  rude  element 
of  the  white  race,  which  unfortunately  infested  the  country  and  engaged 
in  plundering  the  mails,  robbing  stage  coaches  and  despoiling  all  of 
their  wealth  who  chanced  to  become  their  prey.  As  the  stock  of  goods 
of  these  ranchmen  became  depleted  it  was  replenished  through  the 
agency  of  Wells,  Fargo  &,  Compan^^'s  Express,  who  brought  thither 
their  orders  of  goods  of  all  description,  and  from  passing  freight  trains 
from  which  they  obtained  without  diflSculty  the  goods  of  larger  bulk 
needed  for  their  trade. 

Seldom  was  their  lonely  life  varied  from  its  monotony.  Each  day, 
perhaps,  they  saw  for  a  few  moments  a  coach  load  of  male  passengers 
who  alighted,  partook  of  the  pure  waters  of  the  spring,  made  a 
few  purchases  from  their  stock,  re-entered  the  coach  and  rolled  on 
toward  the  setting  sun.  It  was  not  often  their  lot  to  look  upon  a 
woman.  That  divine  inspiration  and  handiwork  of  our  Maker  had  not 
yet  learned  to  endure  the  severe  trials  of  an  overland  journey.  It  was 
seldom  indeed  that  a  long  and  perilous  overland  journey  by  stage  coach 


208  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  * 

in  the  olden  days  was  sweetened  by  the  presence  of  a  woman.    Man 
journeyed  alone  in  those  ruder  and  more  adventurous  days. 

I  remember,  however,  an  incident  while  halting  customarily  at 
this  spot,  which  made  a  deep  impression.  There  chanced  to  be  two 
remarkably  handsome  women  of  different  types  of  beauty,  accompany- 
ing their  husbands  as  passengers  to  the  Pacific  coast.  These  ladies 
remained  in  the  coach,  while  their  husbands  and  friends  alighted 
to  refresh  themselves  at  the  ranchmen's  bar  and  counter.  TVe  all 
entered  the  stockade,  partook  freely  of  the  cold  water,  and  thence 
turned  to  the  store  to  continue  the  line  of  refreshment.  The  frontiers- 
men were  gone.  We  knocked  and  hammered  u|X)n  the  counter,  but 
they  came  not.  We,  however,  helped  ourselves  to  what  appeared  to 
be  set  before  us,  and  very  freely  consumed  a  goodly  portion  of  the 
frontiersmen's  stock.  When  we  finished  we  laid  upon  the  counter 
what  we  deemed  to  be  a  sufficient  quid  pro  quo^  in  the  recognized 
currency  of  Uncle  Sam  before  his  return  to  sjiecie  payments,  and 
wended  our  way  toward  the  coach,  which  had  been  driven  off  to 
the  side  of  the  station  to  refresh  the  animals.  What  our  surprise  was 
can  be  imagined  when  we  found  our  lost  tradesmen  standing  by  the 
side  of  the  coach  like  marble  statues,  perfectly  immovable,  gazing 
with  fixed  attention  upon  the  pretty  ladies  within  the  coach.  The 
ladies  did  not  seem  to  mind  what,  in  other  lands  and  under  other 
circumstances,  would  have  been  an  insult.  As  one  of  them  afterward 
informed  us,  she  appreciated  and  sympathized  with  the  tenderness 
exhibited  by  the  rough  men  of  the  frontier  as  they  stood  without 
a  word  and  gazed  upon  their  features ;  and  she  said  to  her  cousin : 

"  Do,  Mollie,  uncover  your  face,  and  let  those  poor  fellows  look 
at  you,  perhaps  they  have  not  seen  a  woman  for  years." 

And  Mollie  uncovered  and  let  the  "poor  fellows"  look  at  her 
more  than  beautiful  face.    God  bless  her ! 

"  Alas,  poor  fellows  I "  Poor,  lonely  frontiersmen.  How  long 
had  it  been  since  your  gaze  had  feasted  upon  such  a  sight  ?  What 
a  world  of  beauty  opened  up  to  your  mortal  vision  in  those  few 
fleeting  moments  I  What  were  goods  and  chattels,  barter  and  sale, 
trade  and  exchange,  beside  the  glow  of  womanly  beauty  that  had 
stolen  unawares  for  a  transitory  moment  within  the  shadow  of  3^our 
monotonous  lives  ?    It  was  like  the  sudden  flash  of  a  sunbeam  in 


I- 

< 

CI 


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309 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  211 

the  darkness  of  clouds,  and  as  refreshing  as  the  dew  and  rain  to 
the  wilted  blossom. 

As  the  coach  rolled  away  we  gazed  backward  with  a  parting 
glance,  and  beheld  these  two  sons  of  the  desert,  these  avant  couriers  of 
civilization,  these  men  of  the  wilderness,  used  to  sudden  danger 
and  the  storm  of  Indian  violence,  these  pioneers,  who,  in  their 
loneliness,  wxre  among  the  first  to  carve  the  paths  of  empire  on  a 
distant  meridian,  still  standing  in  a  dazed  condition,  looking  at  the 
vacancy  of  air,  where  but  a  moment  before  a  vision  of  beauty 
enraptured  their  gaze  and  enthralled  their  souls.  Call  it  weakness  in 
men,  if  you  will,  but  let  the  battle-fields  of  earth  speak!  It  is 
woman's  province  to  enslave.  Her  smiles  and  tears  have  changed  the 
maps  of  the  world.     They  have  even  wrought  greater  miracles. 

Washakie  was  another  station  we  passed  on  the  old  stage  road, 
named  after  the  old  chief  of  a  tribe  of  Bannock  Indians,  whose  reser- 
Tation  was  located  in  Wind  River  Valley,  a  rich  country  lying  in  Wyo- 
ming Territory,  north  of  the  Sweetwater  River  and  mines. 

There  was  nothing  remarkable  about  this  station  or  its  surround- 
ings to  attract  particular  attention  from  those  who  journeyed  past  it 
when  it  formed  one  of  the  "  home  stations"  of  old  overland  traveling 
days.  The  old  chief,  however,  commanded  much  attention  from  those 
who  from  one  cause  or  another  were  thrown  in  his  way,  and  were 
shrewd  enough  to  gain  his  confidence.  Like  all  others  of  his  race  he 
was  exceedingly  reticent,  save  to  those  who  by  some  act  of  kindness  or 
special  mark  of  distinction  had  gained  his  esteem.  To  all  such  he  gave 
his  confidence  and  implicit  trust.  He  was  a  dignified  old  savage,  very 
tall  and  of  herculean  frame,  one  of  the  finest  specimens  of  Indian 
manhood  I  ever  beheld.  He  had,  when  in  the  humor,  much  to  relate 
concerning  his  prowess  and  skill  in  Indian  warfare.  His  proudest  boast, 
however,  was  that  he  had  never  shed  a  drop  of  the  white  man's  blood 
nor  adorned  his  girdle  with  a  white  man's  scalp.  And  I  think  old 
Washakie  told  the  truth,  for  he  had  always  been  a  firm  friend  of  the 
whites  and  never  participated  himself  nor  permitted  his  tribe  to  engage 
in  any  of  the  murderous  raids  upon  the  settlements,  frequent  in  those 
and  earlier  days.  And  the  whites  in  turn  had  done  him  many  favors 
and  performed  certain  acts  of  kindness  which  involved  hardship,  sacri- 
fices and  sometimes  loss  of  life. 

The  rich  hunting  grounds  of  this  tribe  was  the  envy  of  the  other 


212  ECHOES   FK03I   THE   ROCKY   MOUXTAIXS. 

tribes  of  Indians,  esi^ecially  of  the  Sioux,  and  its  boundaries  were  fre- 
quently invaded  by  that  wariike  band,  who  would  descend  suddenh^  in 
force  and  drive  the  Bannocks  out  of  their  own  country,  and  force  them 
sometimes  to  take  shelter  under  the  guns  of  Fort  Bridger,  many  mUes 
distant.  Of  course  their  raid  was  one  of  plunder,  and  after  capturing  all 
the  game  they  could  bear  away  on  their  ponies,  and  stealing  everything 
belonging  to  the  Bannocks  which  had  been  abandoned  in  the 
flight  for  their  lives,  they  would  swiftly  return  to  their  own  homes  to 
avoid  a  conflict  with  the  United  States  troops,  who  would  be  sent  for- 
ward to  capture  the  depredating  savages  who  liad  left  their  reserva- 
tions. 

After  the  discovery  of  gold  near  South  Pass  and  the  estabUshment 
of  several  mining  towns  in  that  neighborhood,  the  Bannocks, 
when  pursued  by  the  hostile  Sioux,  would  fallback  ujxjn  those  settle- 
ments in  the  foothills  of  the  mountains  for  protection. 

Upon  one  occasion,  after  a  most  determined  resistance  and  great 
loss  of  life,  the  Bannocks  under  "Washakie,  slowly  retreated  into  these 
settlements.  The  miners,  all  brave  and  daring  men  and  used  to  Indian 
warfare,  seized  their  arms  and  rushed  forward  to  the  aid  of  the  retreat- 
ins:  band  of  friendlv  Indians.  Beformins:  their  line  of  battle  in  accord- 
ance  with  Indian  tactics  with  the  aid  and  under  the  leadership 
of  the  whites,  they  made  a  most  gallant  charge  back  upon 
the  pursuing  tribe,  and  in  turn  put  them  to  flight.  At  each  crack  of 
the  rifle  of  a  white  sharpshooter,  a  savage  Sioux  fell  from  his  pony  and 
instantly  his  streaming  scalp  would  deck  the  girdle  of  a  Bannock.  The 
new  and  powerful  enemy  armed  with  the  repeating  Henry  rifle,  was  a 
foe  the  Sioux  had  not  expected  to  meet,  and  being  finallv  overcome, 
hastily  retreated,  leaving  behind  them,  contrary  to  their  custom,  many 
of  their  dead. 

An  Indian  never  forgets  an  injury,  either  real  or  fancied.  Time 
may  elapse  and  the  occurrence  fade  from  our  own  memory,  but  never 
from  that  of  a  savage.  In  his  breast  he  religiousl}^  cherishes  the 
wrong,  and  sooner  or  later  seeks  his  revenge.  And  thus  it  was  with 
the  occurrence  just  related.  Stealing  silently  under  the  cover  of  dark- 
ness into  the  mining  settlements  on  the  Sweetwater,  after  the  lapse 
of  a  year,  the  hostile  Sioux  first  killed  all  the  miners  remote  from  the 
town,  and  mutilated  their  bodies  in  a  most  barbarous  manner,  among 
them,  Doctor  Barr,  a  venerable  retired  physician  of  wealth,  who, 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  213 

from  a  profound  love  of  nature  left  the  haunts  of  civilization  and  sought 
a  retreat  in  the  mountains,  where,  amid  the  wild  scenery  and  grandeur 
that  surrounded  him,  he  could  worship  its  deity.  After  applying  the 
torch  to  the  quartz  mills  at  the  little  town  of  "Miners  Dehght,"  situate 
upon  the  famous  lode  of  the  same  name,  they  proceeded  hastily  toward 
South  Pass  City,  distant  but  six  miles,  killing  and  mutilating  all  on 
their  way,  and  destroying  all  the  mills  and  improvements  intervening. 
A  messenger,  however,  had  carried  the  news  of  the  Indian  raid  to  that 
place,  and  the  savages  finding  them  prepared  to  resist  an  attack,  again 
retreated,  followed  by  the  whites  who  secured  a  number  of  their 
scalps. 

This  attack  virtually  destroyed  the  prosperity  of  this  promising 
young  mining  settlement,  which  otherwise  might  have  flourished  into 
importance.  Many  valuable  lives  were  lost,  a  number  of  whom  were 
old  pioneers  and  men  of  wealth  and  standing  in  the  community. 
Among  those  whom  the  savages  captured  and  tortured  to  death  was 
a  little  boy  who  was  bearing  a  message  to  the  first-named  town,  totally 
unaware  of  the  close  proximity  of  the  savage  fiends,  who,  for  devilish 
sport,  twisted  his  tender  limbs  from  his  body  and  the  joints  from  their 
sockets. 

The  military  authorities  afterward  established  a  post  a  few  miles 
from  South  Pass  City,  in  the  valley  of  the  little  Po-pa-goe.  The  force, 
however,  consisting  of  but  a  single  company  of  unmounted  troops,  was 
of  little  avail.  The  Sioux  Indians  continued  their  raids  upon  the 
Bannocks,  and  frequently  approached  near  enough  to  the  white  settle- 
ments to  occasionally  murder  a  miner  and  drive  off  the  stock  grazing 
in  the  contiguous  valleys.  I  was  informed  that  during  an  engagement 
with  the  United  States  troops  incident  upon  one  of  these  raids,  they 
would  have  been  overpowered  and  slaughtered,  had  it  not  been  for 
the  gallantry  of  the  miners,  who,  understanding  Indian  warfare  and 
its  tactics  much  better  than  the  soldiers,  finally  put  them  to  flight  and 
saved  the  troops  from  annihilation. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  GRAND  CASON  OF  THE  COLORADO-REVIEW  OF  MAJOR  POWELL'S  EXPLOR- 
ATIONS -  STORIES  AND  LEGEXD3  OF  THE  MYSTIC  STREAM- PERILS  PASSED- 
BATTLIXG  ^\^TH  THE  WATERS  —  GOING  DOWN  THE  FALLS  —  SUBLIME  COUR- 
AGE AND  HEROISM. 

Green  River,  a  rapid  mountain  stream,  which  takes  its  rise  beyond 
Fremont's  Peak  in  the  Wind  River  Mountains,  in  latitude  43'  15'  and 
longitude  109*  45'  approximately,  was  the  next  object  of  interest  on 
my  overland  journey,  and  in  a  chapter  succeeding  I  shaU  relate  mat- 
ters of  a  personal  character,  which  transpired  about  a  year  after  1  first 
crossed  its  swift-rolling, waters. 

As  this  was  the  point  of  Major  Powell's  expedition  for  the  explo- 
ration of  the  Grand  Canon  of  the  Colorado,  and  as  the  incidents  of 
that  exploration  are  of  the  most  intense  interest  to  the  public,  I  shall 
devote  this  chapter  to  a  review  of  that  wonderful  and  successful 
undertaking. 

The  source  of  this  river  is  derived  from  myriads  of  little  lakes, 
nestled  amid  the  crags  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  whose  deep,  icy  emerald 
Walters  are  continually  refreshed  by  the  drippings  of  eternal  snows, 
falling  ever  in  the  solitudes  of  their  Alpine  homes.  This  stream,  pass- 
ing through  mountain  gorges  and  tumbling  and  boiUng  over  cascades 
and  cataracts,  forms  with  Grand  River  the  vast  Colorado,  which  winds 
its  circuitous  way  through  Utah  and  Arizona,  and  lost  at  times  for 
hundreds  of  mQes  within  gloomy  depths  of  vast  canons,  whose  towering 
walls,  3,000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  stream,  stand  like  embattlements 
of  old,  whence  the  ancient  gods  hurled  the  thunder  of  their  wrath, 
fiinally  escapes  from  its  prison  gloom  and  roUing  over  the  burning  arid 
plains  of  the  Lower  Colorado,  empties  its  turbid  waters  into  the  Gulf 
of  California. 

Grand  River  has  its  source  also  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  several 
miles  west  of  Long's  Peak,  in  latitude  40*  17'  and  longitude  105*  45' 
approximately.  Like  that  of  Green  River,  its  source  is  derived  from 
a  group  of  small  lakes,  in  the  heart  of  the  mountains,  whose  waters 

214 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTA.INS.  215 

are  replenished  from  perpetual  snow-realms  which  discharge  their  icy 
streams  into  a  common  reservoir  called  Grand  Lake,  whose  beautiful 
glassy  surface  reflects  the  towering  cliffs  and  granite  crags  of  its 
eastern  shore^  and  the  lofty  pines  and  emerald  firs  on  its  western 
border. 

The  upper  portion  of  the  Great  Basin  of  the  Colorado  rises  from 
4,000  to  8,000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  This  loft}^  region  is  set 
with  snow-clad  mountain  ranges  looming  above  the  sea  level  from 
8,000  to  14,000  feet.  All  the  long  winter  months  ceaseless  snow  storms 
pile  their  white  waves  around  these  mountain  rims,  rolling  up  to  the 
highest  crags,  filling  all  the  gorges,  bridging  the  canons  that  split  those 
stormy  heights,  burying  far  out  of  sight  the  forests  of  fir  and  pine, 
and  building  their  creamy  avalanches,  held  in  check  by  the  God  of 
winter,  to  await  the  motion  of  a  distant  sunbeam  on  its  flight  to  earth 
to  unloose  the  bars  that  bind  them  to  their  granite  crags. 

When  summer  comes  with  its  hot  breath  to  melt  these  mountain 
walls  of  snow,  a  million  cascades,  says  Major  Powell,  roll  down  the 
mountain  sides.  "  Ten  million  cascade  brooks  unite  to  form  ten  thou- 
sand torrent  creeks;  ten  thousand  torrent  creeks  unite  to  form  a  hun- 
dred roaring  rivers ;  a  hundred  roaring  rivers  unite  to  form  the  Colo- 
rado, which  rolls,  a  mad,  turbid  stream,  into  the  Gulf  of  California." 

Silence  and  ignorance  had  clothed  this  water  course  from  the 
mountains  to  the  sea,  from  the  time  when  the  expiring  volcanic  agen- 
cies had  cut  its  pathway  in  mighty  gorges  and  piled  up  huge  cinder 
cones  and  vast  cliffs,  and  poured  its  floods  of  lava  from  giant  fissures 
over  the  table-lands  in  sheets  of  black  basalt,  until  within  a  very  recent 
period,  its  mysterious  depths  were  for  the  first  time  invaded  by  an 
intelligent  force,  capable  of  unfolding  its  sublime  secrets — the  exploring 
expedition,  organized  in  1869  by  Prof.  J.  W.  Powell,  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Smithsonian  Institute,  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

From  the  report  of  Major  Powell,  found  in  "  Explorations  of  the 
Colorado  River  of  the  West  and  its  Tributaries— 1869,  18Y0,  1871  and 
1872,"  we  gather  the  following  interesting  narration  of  that  eventful 
and  perilous  journey  into  the  caverns  of  the  earth  on  the  tideless  ocean 
of  the  Colorado. 

Many  indeed  were  the  legends  and  wonderful  stories  told  of  this 
mystic  stream  by  the  wild  hunters'  and  trappers'  firesides.  Many 
were  the  tales  related  of  parties  entering  the  gorge  in  boats  and  borne 


216  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

with  swift  velocity  into  mighty  whirlpools  and  overwhelmed  by  an 
abyss  of  boiling  waters ;  of  vast  underground  passages  of  hundreds  of 
m^iles  into  whose  mysterious  depths  boats  had  passed  never  to  return ; 
of  mighty  falls  whose  awful  roaring  was  heard  on  distant  mountain 
tops;  of  parties  wandering  on  the  brink  of  tbe  canon  and  perishing 
from  thirst  in  full  view  of  the  river,  unable  to  descend  its  rocky  depths, 
while  the  gurgle  and  swirl  of  the  waters  fell  upon  their  dying  ears 
maddening  their  brain. 

The  romantic  savage,  too,  had  woven  the  mysteries  of  the  canons 
into  the  mythology  of  his  religion.  Long  ago,  many  hundreds  of  moons 
before  the  white  man  had  invaded  their  silent  abodes,  a  great  and  wise 
chief  mourned  the  death  of  his  squaw  and  would  not  be  comforted.  One 
day  in  the  midst  of  his  grief,  the  spirit  of  an  Indian  gotl  suddenly 
appeared  to  him  and  told  him  his  Avife  was  in  a  happier  land  and  offered 
to  lead  him  there  that  he  might  himself  behold  her  if,  upon  his  return, 
he  would  cease  his  useless  grief.  The  great  chief  promised,  whereupon 
the  spirit  of  the  Indian  god  made  a  trail  through  the  mountain  that 
intervened  between  that  beautiful  Western  land,  where  soft  summer 
breezes  warmed  the  cheeks  of  his  departed  wife  and  the  desert  home  of 
the  mourning  Xu-ma  chief.  This  trail  was  the  canon  gorge  of  the  Col- 
orado. Through  its  pathway  he  led  the  willing  chief,  who  beheld  his 
happy  wife  and  returned  in  |)eace.  Then  the  deity  claimed  from  the 
chief  a  promise  that  he  would  make  known  to  none  the  joys  of  that 
beautiful  land,  lest  by  comparison  they  should  grow  weary  of  their 
present  lot  and  through  discontent  lose  all  happiness  upon  the  earth. 
Then  the  spirit  rolled  a  raging,  turbulent  river  into  the  gorge,  that 
should  engulf  any  who  should  attempt  to  iienetrate  its  mysterious 
paths.  Such  is  the  Indian  legend,  and  Professor  Powell  was  warned 
by  the  Indian  tribes  along  its  bowlers  not  to  enter  the  canon,  as  by 
such  act  of  disobedience  to  the  gods  and  contempt  for  their  authority, 
he  would  surely  bring  upon  himself  and  party  certain  death  as  a  pun- 
ishment for  such  a  crime  and  the  apj>easing  of  the  gods  who  guarded 
from  intrusion  its  mysterious  realms. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1S69  Major  Powell  organized  a  small  party 
to  explore  the  Grand  Canon  of  the  Colorado.  Boats  were  constructed 
in  Chicago  and  transportetl  by  rail  to  the  point  where  Green  River  is 
crossed  by  the  Union  Pacific  Eailroad.  The  plan  adopted  was  to 
descend  Green  River  into  the  Colorado  and  the  Colorado  through 
Grand  Canon. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIIs'S.  217 

On  the  24th  of  May,  1869,  with  four  boats  and  ten  men  in  all, 
including  himself,  Major  Powell  started  from  Green  River  City  on  his 
perilous  journey.  Two  days  later  he  entered  and  passed  safely  through 
Flaming  Gorge,  the  first  of  the  series  of  caiions  made  by  the  passage 
of  the  river  through  the  Uintah  range  of  mountains.  He  found  a  bril- 
liant red  gorge,  whose  cliffs  or  walls  were  1,200  feet  high.  All  of 
these  smaller  canons  are  filled  with  wave-beaten  rocks  and  swift  cur- 
rents of  foaming  rapids,  through  which  the  boats  had  to  be  carefully 
guided.  On  a  high  rock  by  the  shore  line  near  the  falls  the  party  found 
the  following  inscription :  "  Ashley,  1855."  An  old  mountaineer  told 
of  a  party,  of  which  Ashle}^  was  one,  attempting  to  ride  these  rapids. 
The  boat  was  swamped  and  the  men  lost  in  the  turbid  stream.  A  view 
from  a  mountain  disclosed  to  Major  Powell  the  upper  water  courses  of 
streams  flowing  into  E.ed  Canon  tumbling  down  5,000  feet  in  five  miles, 
running  through  grassy  vales  at  times,  but  emerging  through  deep  dark 
gorges  into  the  canon  below.  He  was  charmed  with  the  prospect 
nature  spread  before  him.  The  little  -valleys  were  beautiful  parks. 
Between  the  parks  were  stately  pine  forests.  Elk  and  deer  flitted 
about.  It  was  a  hunter's  paradise,  for  it  was  the  home  of  the  great 
grizzly  bear  and  the  fierce  mountain  lions.  The  forest  aisles  were  filled 
with  music  of  birds ;  flowers  decked  the  green  sod ;  noisy  brooks 
meandered  through  fields  and  ledges  of  moss  covered  rocks,  and  gleam- 
ing in  the  distance  were  the  snow  fields  on  the  mountain  tops  away  off 
among  the  clouds. 

The  caiion  walls  w^ere  buttressed  on  a  grand  scale,  with  deep  alcoves 
intervening,  and  columned  crags  crowning  the  cliffs  looked  far  down 
upon  the  rolling  river  below.  At  noon  the  sun  shone  on  vermilion 
walls,  shaded  in  green  and  gray  by  the  lichen  on  the  rocks.  There 
was  no  shore  line  or  wave  beach,  the  water  filled  the  channel  from  wall 
to  wall,  and  the  caiion  opened  like  the  portals  to  a  world  of  beaut3\ 

Shadows  settled  in  the  caiion  as  the  sun  declined  beyond  its  Trails 
2,500  feet  high.  The  vermilion  gleams  and  roseate  hues  blending  with 
the  green  and  gray  changed  slowly  to  sombre  brown,  and  black  shadows 
crept  over  the  little  party  on  the  waters  below;  it  was  now  the  dark 
portals  of  a  world  of  gloom,  a  gateway  to  other  mysteries  or  glories 
which  time  should  unfold  in  their  eventful  and  perilous  journey. 

On  the  8th  of  June  Major  Powell  entered  the  Caiion  of  Lodore, 
and  found  a  succession  of  rapids  over  which  the  boats  had  to  be  trans- 
ported.  After  a  day  of  great  excitement  and  peril,  having  been  dashed 


218  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIKS. 

into  the  water  several  times  by  the  "  broadside  waves ,"  the  little  party 
spread  their  blankets  on  the  beach  for  a  ni^t's  rest.  Lying  down 
they  looked  op  throogh  the  loft\'  walls  of  tj^e  canons  and  saw  but  a 
crescent  blue  sky,  with  two  or  three  constellations  peering  down  upon 
them.  The  commander  saw  a  bright  star  that  seemed  to  rest  its 
jeweled  crown  upon  the  very  verge  of  the  overhanging  cliff  on 
the  East,  Slowly  it  floated  on  etherial  wing  from  its  rest  upon  the 
rock  until  its  crown  of  glory  dropped  its  sparkling  rays  like  the 
scintillations  of  a  diamond  within  the  gloomy  depths  of  the  deep 
canon,  and  he  wondered  that  the  unset  jewel  did  not  drop  beneath. 
In  fact,  it  did  appear  to  descend  as  by  a  gentle  curve,  as  if  the  bright 
sky  in  which  the  stars  were  set,  rested  on  either  mighty  wall,  and 
swayed  downward  with  its  own  weight,  dropping  the  diamond  stars 
within  the  caiion.  He  discovered  that  the  overhanging  jewel  was  the 
bright  star  *'Vega,"  and  he  named  the  giant  wall  the  "Cliff  of  the 
Harp." 

On  the  day  following  in  passing  the  rapids  at  Disaster  Falls 
through  the  gateway  of  Lodore,  they  met  with  their  first  serious  acci- 
dent, in  the  wreck  and  loss  of  one  of  their  boats,  and  on  the  shore  to 
their  surprise,  they  found  the  remnants  of  a  former  wreck,  fragments 
of  a  boat,  a  few  old  tin  plates  and  an  old  iron  pot,  on  the  sand 
beach  covered  with  driftwood.  They  had  found  the  spot  where  the 
Ashley  party  was  wrecked  and  lost,  and  they  had  barely  escaped  the 
same  fate. 

They  were,  however,  nearly  through  the  Canon  of  Lodore,  and 
were  leaving  behind  them,  to  dwell  alone  in  their  memory,  its  scenic 
grandeur,  its  walls  and  cliffs,  its  peaks  and  crags,  its  amphitheaters  and 
alcoves.  They  climbed  a  thousand  feet  above  the  river  and  took  a 
parting  view.  A  little  stream  flowed  down  on  the  right  and  another 
on  the  left,  and  they  gazed  away  up  the  divided  walls,  through  an 
ascending  vista,  to  cliffs  and  crags  and  towers,  a  mile  back,  and  2,000 
feet  overhead.  Gleaming  cascades  were  before  them,  and  pines  and 
firs  stood  on  the  rocks,  and  aspens  overhung  the  waters.  The  music  of 
falling  waters  far  up  the  canons  enchanted  their  senses.  They  named 
them  "Rippling  Brook."  The  rocks  below  were  red  and  brown,  set  in 
deep  shadows,  above  them  they  were  vermilion  covered  with  sunshine. 
The  light  above  appeared  more  brilliant  by  the  bright  tints  of  the 
rocks ;  the  shadows  below  more  gloomy  from  the  somber  hues  of  the 


GATE  OF  LODORE. 


819 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  2'Zl 

brown  walls.  The  vast  heights  of  the  caiion  walls  became  more 
apparent  from  those  shades  of  lights  and  shadows,  and  from  where 
they  stood  upon  the  mountain  wall  it  seemed  a  long  way  up  to  the 
world  of  open  sky  and  sunshine,  and  a  long  way  down  to  their  home 
upon  the  waters  amid  the  gloom  and  somber  hues  of  the  canon^s 
base. 

Where  the  Yampa  enters  Green  Kiver  at  the  foot  of  a  rock — a 
single  rock  700  feet  high  and  one  mile  in  length — there  was  on  the 
east  side  a  wonderful  little  park  in  which  the  echo  of  your  voice  is 
strangely  heard.  The  great  explorer  describes  the  beauty  of  this 
wild  romantic  spot.  Great  hollow  domes  are  carved  upon  the  rock 
where  the  swift  Green  sweeps  by ;  Avillow^s  border  the  river ;  clumps 
of  box-elder  ornament  the  landscape  ;  a  few  cottonwoods  stand  sen- 
tinel at  the  lower  end.  Opposite  the  rock  your  words  are  repeated 
with  startling  clearness,  but  in  a  soft  mellow  tone  that  transfuses  them 
into  magical  music.  You  can  scarce  believe  those  musical  tones  of 
varied  notes,  sometimes  of  twelve  repetitions  passing  back  and  forth 
across  the  riv^er  between  this  rock  and  the  eastern  wall,  are  but  the 
echo  of  your  own  voice. 

Above  and  beyond  Echo  Rock  towers  the  summit  of  Mount 
Dawes  standing  in  the  clear  atmosphere  of  this  lofty  point,  Major 
Powell  looked  away  to  the  north  and  beheld  in  the  dim  distance  the 
Sweetwater  and  Wind  River  Mountains ;  to  the  northwest,  the  Wasatch 
Mountains  and  peaks  of  the  Uintah  Range ;  to  the  east  the  western 
slopes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  hundreds  of  miles  distant;  below 
stretched  the  valleys  in  perspective,  deep  canon  gorges  and  gleaming 
waters. 

Crossing  to  a  ridge  near  the  brink  of  the  Canon  of  Lodore,  he  dis- 
covered a  monument  that  had  been  built  by  human  hands  a  long  time 
ago.  Perhaps  it  was  a  century  old.  Plants  were  growing  in  the 
joints  between  the  rocks  and  the  rocks  were  lichened  over  by  the  hand 
of  Time. 

What  lone  wanderer  amid  these  Alpine  heights  had  fixed  this 
memento  of  his  life  in  the  solitudes  ?  Did  he  leave  the  haunts  of  men, 
not  content  with  living  in  his  own  age,  that  in  solitude  he  might  live 
in  all  the  ages  ?  Did  he  lack  the  sympathy  Avhich  proclaims  that  a 
brother's  suffering  demands  a  brother's  pity,  and  seek  solace  from  the 
great  heart  of  nature,  that  chart  of  God  mapping  out  his  attributes  in 


'i'Zi  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

the  shadow  of  His  wisdom  ?  The  wanderer's  bones  have  raoldered, 
but  his  monument  remains  unbroken  among  the  clouds,  guarded  bv 
the  watching  stars. 

This  line  of  peaks  of  the  Uintah  mountains  was  named  "  Sierra 
Escalante,"  in  honor  of  a  Spanish  priest  who  traversed  this  region  from 
the  south  nearly  a  century  ago.  The  reverend  father  may  have  built 
this  monument  that  time  had  not  moldered  I 

Through  Rainbow  Park,  its  high  colors  gleaming  in  the  midday 
sun  with  the  lustre  of  satin,  through  Whirljx>ol  Caiion  with  its  gloomy 
chasms,  swift  rolling  waters  and  mad  roar  of  waves — through  Split 
Mountain  Canon  with  its  broad  and  brilliant  gateway,  and  the  lofty 
line  of  crags  sentineling  Mount  Hawkins,  the  explorers  rapidl}^  passed 
until  they  entered  the  waters  of  the  "White,  where  it  forms  a  junction 
with  the  Green.  Beyond  the  Green  was  the  famed  valley  of  the 
White,  vdih  its  long  winding  ways  and  strangely  carved  statues  that 
have  given  it  the  name  of  the  "  Goblin  Cit}^" 

Floatmg  onward,  however,' they  found  s^'mmetrical  amphitheaters 
as  they  swept  around  the  curved  walls.  Thence  through  a  region  of 
the  wildest  desolation,  where  the  canon  was  tortuous,  the  river  raj>id 
and  the  region  cui  into  a  wilderness  of  gray  and  brown  cliffs.  Piles  of 
broken  rock  lay  against  these  walls;  crags  and  tower-shaped  peaks 
rose  everywhere;  away  above  them  were  long  lines  of  broken  cliffs, 
and  far  beyond  were  forests  of  pine,  glimpses  .of  which  suddenly 
appeared  through  vistas  of  rock. 

Xo  vegetation  cheers  the  view.  Althouorh  it  was  midsummer,  not 
a  spire  of  grass  or  a  pale  flower  could  be  found,  hiding  its  modest  head 
within  the  shadow  of  a  rock.  Here  and  there  a  dwarf  bush  clung  to 
the  cliffs,  and  a  stunted  cedar  sprang  from  a  crevice,  a  little  chumpy 
war-club  cedar,  that  had  never  been  refreshed  by  a  cooling  raindrop. 
This  was  the  Canon  of  Desolation  I 

Gliding  over  a  rapid,  a  boat  was  upset  and  the  commander  of  the 
expedition  pitched  into  the  swift  current.  Breakers  rolled  over  him, 
but  he  plied  the  stroke  of  an  expert  swimmer  and  kept  his  head  above 
water,  running  with  the  breakers.  Finallv  the  great  waves  were  passed, 
and  he  with  two  companions  reached  a  great  pile  of  driftwood.  A 
huge  fire  on  the  bank  soon  dried  their  clothing,  and  the  balance  of  the 
day  was  spent  in  repairing  damages.  Much  of  great  value  was  lost  by 
this  mishap.     All  the  way  through  the  Caiion  of  Desolation,  they  were 


CANON  OF  THE  COLORADO,  WHERE  MAJ.  POWELL  AND  PARTY  WERE  UPSET, 

223 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  235 

impeded  by  ugly  rapids  which  forced  them  to  make  portages  and  let 
down  the  boats  by  line,  often, with  great  peril. 

Emerging  from  the  Canon  of  Desolation,  they  passed  through  a 
more  open  country  for  a  mile,  but  met  with  a  new  difficulty.  The 
river  filled  the  entire  channel,  the  walls  were  vertical,  with  no  sand  or 
wave  beach,  and  a  bad  rapid  beset  with  dangerous  rocks  lay  before 
them.  It  was  a  perilous  moment.  They  landed  on  a  rock  in  the 
stream.  The  little  boat  was  let  down  to  another  rock  below,  the  men 
of  the  larger  boat  holding  to  the  line.  The  second  boat  was  let  down 
in  the  same  way,  and  the  line  of  the  third  rope  was  brought  with 
them.  The  third  boat  pushed  out  from  the  upper  rock,  and,  as  they 
held  her  line  below,  they  pulled  in  and  caught  her  as  she  swept  by  the 
foot  of  the  rock  on  which  they  stood.  Again,  the  first  was  let  down 
stream  the  length  of  her  line,  and  the  second  boat  was  passed  down  by 
the  first  to  the  length  of  her  line,  making  fast  to  the  second  boat  and 
swino^ino^  down  three  leng-ths  of  the  line  with  the  other  two  boats 
intervening.  Held  in  this  way  the  men  pulled  her  into  a  cove  in  the 
left  wall  where  she  was  made  fast.  A  man  on  the  rock  above  was  left 
holding  the  line  of  the  little  boat.  He  sprang  from  the  rock,  clinging 
to  the  line  with  one  hand  and  swimming  with  the  other,  and.  was 
caught  and  pulled  in  as  he  shot  by.  As  the  two  boats  thus  loosened 
drifted  down,  the  men  in  the  cove  pulled  them  all  in  as  they  came 
opposite.  Passing  around  to  a  point  of  rock  below  the  cove,  close  to 
the  wall,  they  made  a  short  portage  over  the  worst  places  in  the  rapid, 
and  again  swiftly  started. 

Now  the  way  was  tortuous,  and  the  river  sweeping  in  curves 
revealed  caves  and  deep  alcoves.  Twin  Alcove  Bend  was  passed. 
High  walls  of  sandstone  lined  the  stream  and  they  wound  about  in 
glens.  Springs  gushed  from  the  rocks,  and  a  winding  gorge  with  over- 
hanging shelves  shut  out  the  light.  They  were  now  in  the  land  of 
Aladdin.  Huge  rocks  were  piled  on  the  right  and  an  arched  ceiling 
rose  overhead.  Rounded  cones  and  buttressed  columns  carved  in  quaint 
shapes  dotted  the  landscape.  .  Beyond  the  rounded  rocks  and  water- 
pockets  they  gazed  off  upon  a  fine  stretch  of  river.  Beyond  the  river 
were  the  naked  rocks  and  beautiful  buttes  rising  to  the  Azure  Cliffs. 
Beyond  and  above  them  were  the  Brown  Cliffs.  And  still  beyond 
and  above  were  the  eternal  mountain  peaks,  and  clouds  piled  over  all. 

Such  was  the  exquisite  charm  and  beauty  of  Tower  Park  and 
Labyrinth  Caiion.     And  over  all,  tvpical  of  the  majesty  aiid  glory  of 

16 


226 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


the  Go(l  of  !N'ature,  who  died  for  man,  there  rose  more  than  two 
thousand  feet  above  these  sublime  works  the  shadow  of  the  cross  in 
the  form  of  "  The  Butte  of  the  Cross."  ^ 

The  Green  and  Grand  Eivers  have  united,  and  now  the  explorers 
were  on  the  swift  rolling  Colorado.  Speculations  seized  the  reins  of 
their  imagination.  What  if  the}'  approached  a  cataract  in  these  canons 
which  thej  can  not  pass,  where  the  walls  rise  from  the  water's  edge 
so  they  can  not  land,  and  where  the  current  is  so  swift  they  can  not 
return  ?     This  was  the  subject  of  much  thought. 


BUTTES  OF  THE  CROSS  IN  THE  TOOX'l-PIN  WU  NEAR  TU  WEEP. 

Passing  through  Stillwater  Caiion,  the  commander  and  a  com- 
panion climbed  the  left  waU  below  the  junction  of  the  two  streams  and 
beheld  a  world  of  grandeur.  Below  was  the  caiion  through  which  the 
Colorado  ran.  Through  a  narrow,  winding  gorge  in  the  northwest 
flowed  the  Green.  From  the  northeast  came  the  Grand,  through  a 
canon  that  seemed  bottomless  from  where  they  stood.  Away  to  the 
west  were  lines  of  cliffs  and  ledges  of  rock,  not  such  ledges  as  the 
quarrjman  gathers  to  build  the  abodes  of  man,  but  ledges  from  which 
the  gods  might  quarry,  mountains  that,  rolled  out  upon  the  level  plain, 
would  make  a  lofty  range.  Before  them  stood  the  strangely  carved 
and  pinnacled  rocks  of  the  Toon'i  jpin  wu  nea'  Tu  weep.  Away  to  the 
east  were  the  eruptive  mountains  of  the  Sierra  La  Sal,  covered  with 
pines  and  snowfields  upon  their  vast  crags.   Wherever  they  gazed  they 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  237 

beheld  a  wilderness  of  rock,  deep  gorges  where  the  rivers  were  lost 
below  cliffs  and  towers  and  pinnacles,  ten  thousand  strange  and 
quaintly  carved  images  of  granite,  and  far  above  them,  rising  to  the 
vault  of  heaven,  mountains  green  and  gray  and  silver  blending  with 
the  clouds. 

Again  they  were  upon  the  waters  of  the  Colorado.  Waves  and 
breakers,  rapids  and  cataracts  were  passed,  in  one  of  which  the 
"  Emma  Dean  "  was  swamped  and  its  inmates  plunged  into  the  swift 
river.  Again  through  rocks  and  breakers,  chutes  and  whirlpools,  and 
great  waves  white  with  foam  they  passed,  where  the  water  was  shot 
up  fifteen  feet  and  piled  back  as  in  gentle  curves  as  in  a  fountain, 
while  the  river  rolled  ceaselessly  on.  And  all  of  this  at  the  lowest  ebb 
of  the  tide,  for  high  above,  sometimes  a  hundred  feet  above  its  present 
stages,  they  viewed  the  water-line  and  saw  logs  and  driftwood  wedged 
into  crevices  far  overhead,  where  the  mighty  floods  had  carried  them, 
where  ten  thousand  roaring  rivers  had  run  from  the  mountain  gorges  to 
the  bottomless  caiions  of  the  Colorado,  when  Winter's  icy  bars  had 
been  unloosed  by  the  breath  of  Spring. 

And  now  they  reached  the  foot  of  Cataract  Caiion,  and  the  tow- 
ers and  pinnacles  of  Mille  Crag  Bend  are  all  before  them.  The  next 
day  they  entered  a  caiion  with  low  red  walls.  Here  they  discovered 
that  a  race  had  preceded  them,  for  the  hand  of  man  was  visible  in  the 
ruins  of  an  old  building  on  the  left  wall.  Upon  the  brink  of  a  rock 
above  the  narrow  plain  beside  the  river  two  hundred  feet  high  stood 
this  old  house.  Its  walls  were  of  stone  laid  in  mortar  and  of  great 
regularity.  It  was  once  three  stories  high.  The  lower  story  was 
intact.  Flints  abounded  in  vast  quantities,  and  fragments  of  pottery 
were  scattered  about  in  great  profusion,  and  etchings  lined  the  cliffs 
down  to  the  river  side. 

Fifteen  miles  farther  down  another  group  was  discovered.  The 
principal  building  was  located  upon  the  summit  of  a  hill,  and  a  part  of 
its  walls  were  still  standing  to  the  height  of  ten  feet,the  mortar  remain- 
ing in  many  places.  It  was  constructed  in  the  form  of  an  L,  with  five 
rooms  on  the  ground  floor,  one  in  the  angle  and  two  in  the  extension, 
with  a  deep  excavation.  A  little  beyond  this  ancient  settlement  the 
explorers  found  a  rounded  eminence,  formed  of  smooth  mounds  piled  one 
upon  another.  Toward  the  summit  they  became  too  steep  to  climb. 
Searching  for  an  easier  way  they  found,  to  their  amazement,  a  perfect 


228  ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY   MOCNTAIXS. 

stairway  cut  in  the  solid  rock  by  human  hands,  skilled  in  the  arts  of 
civilization-  At  a  vertical  wall  of  ten  feet  th^re  stood  an  old  ladder 
used  in  the  scaling.  They  had  found  the  "Watch  Tower  of  that  ancient 
people,  whose  homes  were  in  the  ruins  left  behind,  and  from  which 
they  doubtless  beheld  the  approach  of  the  nomadic  tribes  that  swept 
them  from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

In  the  year  1776  a  Spanish  priest  of  the  name  of  Father  Escalante 
made  a  journey  connected  with  his  religious  orders  from  Santa  Fe,  the 
oldest  town  in  Xorth  America,  to  the  northwest,  crossing  the  Grand 
and  Green  Rivers  and  passing  down  by  the  "Wasatch  Mountains  to  the 
Rio  Virgen.  He  desired  to  reach  the  Mission  of  Monterey,  but  finaUy 
decided  the  route  to  be  impracticable  from  information  derived  from 
the  Indians.  "Wishino:  to  avoid  the  lono:  circuitous  route  over  which  he 
had  just  traveled,  he  endeavored  to  proceed  by  one  more  direct,  which 
led  him  across  the  Colorado  at  a  point  known  as  El  Yado  de  los 
Padres.  From  the  description  he  had  read,  Major  Powell  was  enabled 
to  determine  the  place  and  present  an  outline  of  the  historic  spot.  A 
little  stream  came  down  through  a  very  narrow  side  caiion  from 
the  west,  an4  it  was  through  this  that  the  priest  moved  upon  his  per- 
ilous journey.  A  well-beaten  Indian  trail  wasyet  to  be  seen.  Between 
the  cliff  and  the  river  there  was  a  little  meadow.  The  ashes  of  many 
camp-fires  were  seen,  and  the  bleached  bones  of  numerous  cattle  were 
scattered  profusely  about.  It  was  the  Indian's  place  of  retreat 
after  depredating  upon  the  Mormons.  The  boats  6f  the  exploring 
party  lay  at  the  crossing  where  the  rafts  of  the  Spanish  priest  floated  a 
century  in  the  past.  The  civilization  of  two  centuries  had  met  after 
more  than  a  hundred  years  had  passed.  One  came  with  the  mjstic 
forms  of  a  religious  order  to  plant  the  banner  of  the  cross  at  a  distant 
Mission  and  braved  starvation  and  death  in  its  holy  work.  The  other 
came  with  the  banner  of  its  country  beneath  whose  aegis  the  myste- 
rious forces  of  enlightenment  in  the  glare  of  the  succeeding  century  had 
torn  away  the  veil  of  obscurity  that  shrouded  these  dark,  unknown 
spots,  and  opened  them  to  the  inspection  of  mankind.  Priest  and 
patriot  pathfinder  shake  hands  across  a  century  and  over  the  waves 
of  the  same  swift-roUing  stream. 

The  explorers  passed  through  Marble  Canon  and  walked  for  miles 
between  walls  of  polished  marble  2,500  feet  high,  on  smooth  marble 
pavements  fretted  with  strange  devices,  and  embossed  with  fantastic 


CLIFF  DWELLERS. 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


229 


patterns.  It  gleamed  with  iridescent  beauty  in  the  shining  sun.  Pas- 
sing to  the  end  of  a  marble  terrace  a  million  brilliant  gems  poured 
their  flood  of  sparkling  light  upon  the  enraptured  explorers.  All 
"wondered  what    it    meant ! 


Approaching  by  boat  they 
found  fountains  bursting 
from  the  rock  high  over- 
head and  their  spray  in  the 
sunshine  formed  the  gems 
of  beauty  dazzling  the  eye. 
Below,  the  rocks  were  cov- 
ered with  mosses  and  ferns 
and  bright  flowering  plants 
This  is  "Yasey's  Paradise" 
named  in  honor  of  the 
botanist. 

It  rained,  and  as  the 
drops  fell,  little  rills  ran 
down  the  marble  walls. 
The  storm  increased,  and 
great  streams  rolled  the  red 
sand  in  bright  rivers  and 
cascades  over  the  walls  and 
it  was  now  seen  how  the 
marble  had  been  polished  by 
the  wash  of  the  afj^es. 

The  explorers  started 
from  Green  EiverCit3'',as  we 
Avill  remember,  on  May  24th, 
1869.  On  the  thirteenth  day 
of  August  of  the  same  year 
they  entered  the  wails  of  the  marble  canon. 

Grand  Canon  and  buried  themselves  in  the  bosom  of  the  earth  three- 
quarters  of  a  mile  from  the  upper  woHd.  It  was  not,  however, 
without  misgivings  that  this  brave  band  of  explorers  entered  the 
gloomy  depths  of  this  vast,  unknown  and  awful  pathway  to  the 
tomb  of  roaring  waters  that  sang  always  their  own  rude  dirge  of 
death. 


230  ECHOES  FROM   THE   KOCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

All  the  perils  they  had  passed  were  as  nothing  to  those  they  now 
encountered.  Their  journey  at  well  nigh  ever\'  step  was  beset  by 
cascades  and  cataracts.  Ledges  of  rock  jutteil  into  the  sti*eam,  their 
tops  just  below  the  surface,  sometimes  rising  above,  and  pinnacles,  and 
towers  broke  the  swift  stream  into  chutes  and  whirlpools,  and  falls 
fifty  feet  high. 

Suddenly  a  great  roar  burst  upon  them.  It  was  the  sound  of 
mighty  rapids,  where  there  was  a  descent  of  eighty  feet  to  a  third  of  a 
mile,  where  the  rushing  waters  broke  into  great  waves  on  the  rocks 
and  lashed  themselves  into  a  mad  white  foam.  There  was  no  portage. 
There  was  no  retreat.  The  rapids  most  be  run.  First  on  the  crest  of 
a  glassy  wave,  then  hurled  suddenly  into  the  trough  of  the  sea,  up  and 
down  they  went ;  higher  and  higher  rolled  the  waves  until  the  break- 
ers rolled  over  the  little  boat.  Still  speeding  past  projected  rocks, 
spinning  in  whirlpools  and  drifting  with  the  swift-rolling  tide,  the 
boats  were  finally  hurled  into  an  eddy  at  the  foot  of  the  falls,  and  the 
rapids  were  run. 

Now  the  walls  of  the  canon  rose  more  than  a  mile  high.  Within 
the  depths  of  this  gloomy  cavern  they  glided  onward,  ever  listening 
for  the  sound  of  treacherous  falls  which  rise  above  the  roar  of  the 
river.  Thus,  on  they  went  by  portage  and  by  run,  over  falls  and 
through  rapids,  past  rocks  and  driftwood,  where  the  waters  rolled 
and  whirled  and  boiled  until  the  reflex  waves  capsized  one  of  the  boat? 
and  the  inmates,  clinging  to  the  sides,  drifted  helplessly  till  caught 
and  rescued  by  the  others.  Clouds  rolled  down  in  huge  masses,  filling 
the  mighty  gorge  with  gloom.  Then  a.  gust  of  wind  lifted  the  clouds 
for  a  moment,  reveahng  the  blue  sky  overhead,  and  through  the  rift  a 
stream  of  golden  sunlight  poured  u|X)n  them.  The  impending  storm 
broke  a  mile  overhead,  and  the  rain  fell  in  cascades  over  the  walls  and 
swelled  the  waters  below. 

And  thus  they  sped  onward  in  their  granite  prison,  while  a  new 
danger  confronted  them.  But  nine  days'  food  was  left  from  the  losses 
in  shooting  the  rapids;  their  little  canvas  was  rotten  and  useless; 
the  rubber  pouches  were  all  lost;  half  of  the  party  was  without  hats; 
not  one  possessed  an  entire  suit  of  clothes,  nor  was  there  a  blanket 
apiece. 

Another  rapid  was  reached  and  another  boat  was  capsized,  and  the 
men,   caught  in  a  whirlpool,  struggled  desperately   for  their  lives. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOL'XTAINS. 


231 


Rescued  at  length,  they  built 
a  lire  of  driftwood  upon  the 
rocks  and  dried  their  clothes. 

A  mile  below  this  camp 
they  were  caught  in  another 
series  of  swift-rolling  rapids, 
and  for  ten  miles  danced 
away  on  one  long  winding 
chute  until  suddenly  the  mad 
roar  of  a  great  fall  Avas  heard. 
They  barely  succeeded  in 
landing  above  it,  and  making 
another  portage.  At  this 
point  they  passed  out  of  the 
granite  walls  and  ran  into 
limestone,  which,  in  time, 
was  succeeded  by  marble 
with  occasional  patches  of 
granite.  They  passed  a  stream 
on  the  riglit  whicli  leaped 
into  the  Colorado  by  a  direct 
fall  of  more  than  one  hundred 
feet  forming  a  beautiful  cas- 
cade. At  its  base  were 
beautiful  ferns  with  enam- 
eled stalks.  A  few  miles  be- 
yond monuments  of  lava 
stood  in  the  riv^er,  and  vast 
quantities  of  cooled  lava  and 
man}^  cinder  cones  were  seen 
on  both  sides,  terminated  by 
an  abrupt  cataract. 

Beyond  the  falls,  upon 
the  very  brink  of  the  canon, 
they  beheld  an  extinct  vol- 
cano, with  a  well-defined 
crater  from  wliich  had 
poured   vast   floods   of  lava 


CLIMBING  THE  GRAND  CANON. 


232  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

into  the  river  bea,  creating  the  falls.  On  the  opposite  side,  200  feet 
above  the  base,  a  river  burst  forth  from  a  crevice  and  rolled  into  the 
Colorado.  The  lava  line  rose  1,500  feet  above' the  river  bed  and  filled 
the  side  canons. 

Again  they  jjassed  within  granite  walls  and  reached  the  head  of 
might}"  rapids,  composed  of  a  succession  of  falls.  Boulders  in  the  river 
fonnetl  a  dam  over  which  the  waters  fell  twenty  feet.  For  300  yards 
Ix'yoml  there  was  a  rapid,  beset  with  rocks,  from  the  bottom  of  which 
on  the  right  a  great  rock  projected  half-way  across  the  river.  Then 
there  was  a  second  fall  below.  Then  a  rapid  filled  with  huge  rocks 
for  200  yards.  It  looked  as  if  death  was  before  them.  They  must 
cither  go  over  the  falls  or  chmb  out  of  the  canon  and  abandon  the 
expedition.  Xo  one  could  conjecture  what  cataracts  lay  beyond, 
what  huge  dams,  what  whirlpools  and  mighty  falls  where  there  could 
be  no  retreat  from  death  up  the  lofty  vertical  walls.  But  at  this  point 
they  could  be  scaled.  Three  of  Major  Powell's  men  refused  to  go  on, 
preferring  to  climb  the  walls  of  the  canon  and  endeavor  to  reach  a 
Mormon  settlement  seventy-five  miles  distant.  Before  leaving  they 
entreated  the  others  to  go  with  them.  They  parted  in  tears ;  each 
thought  the  other  invited  death. 

With  that  mighty  human  energy  which  characterizes  the  subhme 
efforts  of  man  struggling  for  supremacy  when  menacetl  by  death  j>erils 
or  where  the  fate  of  some  vast  endeavor  hangs  poised  in  the  balance, 
these  brave  men,  who  chose  rather  to  meet  death  than  abandon  their 
labors,  in  the  providence  of  God,  sustained  by  an  unfaltering  faith  in 
the  ultimate  success  of  their  might}'  undertaking,  with  calm  but  deter- 
mined resolution  pulled  out  into  the  chute  of  the  second  falls  (having 
made  a  portage  of  the  first)  and  plunged  swiftly  over  it.  Submerged, 
they  rose  again  in  their  air-tight  boats,  which  could  not  sink,  and,  steer- 
ing clear  of  dangerous  rocks,  passed  safely  through  the  perilous  rapids 
to  more  quiet  waters.  Guns  were  fired  to  signal  the  retreating  party 
of  their  safety  in  shooting  the  rapids.  And  now,  for  many  miles,  the}" 
hail  a  succession  of  rapids  and  falls,  all  of  which  were  run  in  safety, 
yet  at  times  full  of  peril.  Finally,  on  the  29th  of  August,  they  left 
behind  them  all  the  curves  and  bends  and  domes  and  towers,  pinnacles 
and  crags,  angles  and  sunken  rocks,  projecting  ledges  and  cliffs;  all 
the  whirlpools,  chutes  and  rapids,  cataracts,  cascades  and  falls,  all 
the  clouds  and  storm  and  gloom  of  the  mighty  gorge,  and  passed 


ECHOES    FllOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  233 

forever  out  from  between  the  granite  walls  of  the  Grand  Caiion  of 
the  Colorado. 

What  a  mighty  work  had  been  performed  in  the  interest  af 
knowledge  and  science !  All  the  dangers  were  passed,  all  the  priva- 
tions were  over,  all  anxiety  was  ended.  The  object  of  the  expedition 
had  been  attained,  the  work  completed,  and  their  names  will  live 
in  history  as  among  the  bravest  and  most  fearless  explorers  of  any  age 
or  clime.  All  Avas  left  behind,  only  memory  remains,  and  the  echo  of 
their  voices  "  the  babbling  gossip  of  the  air."  Henceforth  their  names 
will  be  forever  linked  with  this  mysterious  pathway,  carved  by  the 
giant  forces  of  an  eruptive  age.  A  voice  from  the  crags  and  cliffs  and 
the  roaring  stream  repeats  the  accent,  "  We  shall  part  no  more ! " 
From  the  council  chamber  of  thought,  from  the  treasure-house  of  the 
mind,  there  will  ever  come  the  remembrance  of  the  mad  whirl 
through  the  boiling  abyss,  the  fearful  plunge  over  the  falls,  the 
terrible  drive  through  the  swift  chute,  the  struggle  with  the  waves 
and  rocks,  the  battle  with  the  breakers,  the  toil  and  labor  of  the 
portage,  the  alternate  heat  and  cold,  the  anxiety  and  dread  of  the 
"  granite  curves,"  the  hours  upon  the  far  heights  of  towering  crags 
and  pinnacles,  the  extrication  from  the  wedge  upon  the  wall  400  feet 
above  the  river,  the  lost  way  upon  the  mountain,  and  the  lonely  watch 
through  the  night,  the  granite  walls  and  slopes  and  cliffs  and  crags  a 
mile  high  composing  the  narrow  canon  through  which  they  floated, 
the  thunder  of  the  storm  pealing  overhead,  the  overhanging  clouds 
filling  the  gorge,  the  gloom  of  their  living  grave  5,000  feet  within 
the  bowels  of  the  earth,  the  parting  with  the  men  who  climbed  out  of 
the  caiion,  the  words  in  their  letters  sent  out  by  them  to  brave  wives 
and  mothers  in  quiet  distant  homes,  the  rack  of  anxiety  as  to  what 
new  dangers  each  few  hundred  yards  would  disclose,  the  unending 
continuity  of  wall,  pinnacle,  tower,  crag,  peak,  fall,  rapid,  whirlpool, 
chute,  cascade,  spray  and  rill  rolling  down  the  vertical  wall,  and  then 
the  sudden  escape,  the  joy  and  ecstacy  of  relief  and  success ;  the  hush 
of  the  water,  the  quiet  of  the  camp,  the  sweet  recollections  of  home 
and  perfect  rest.  And  such  is  the  story  of  Major  Powell  of  his 
wondrous  journey  through  the  hitherto  unknown  and  mysterious 
canons  of  the  Colorado.  Battles  have  been  fought  that  have  mapped 
out  new  empires,  and  changed  the  destinies  of  nations.  The  courage 
and  endurance  of  their  heroes  was  not  as  sublime  as  that  of  the  heroes 
of  the  canons  of  the  Colorado. 


CHAPTER  X^T 

MTDNTGHT  ADVEXTfKES  TTPON  GREEN  Rl  V  ER  —  CROSSING  THE  TTRBID  STREAM 
IN  A  SKIFF -ALMOST  LOST -LOADED  TO  THE  G  UN- WALES ->nRACULOUSLT 
SAVED— THE  MAYOR  OF  CHEYENNE  AND  TWO  OTHERS  LOST  AT  THE  SAME 
SPOT  A  FEW  WEEKS  AFTERWARDS  — THE  FAMOUS  BEAUTY  AT  GREEN  RH'ER 
STATION,  AND  HER  VOICE  OF  THUNDER- THE  MURDER  OF  A  TRADER  BY  A 
GREEN  RIVER  DESPERADO  -  ARREST  OF  THE  MURDERER  BY  THE  CIVIL  AU- 
THORITIES OF  GREEN  RFYER  CITY  — SEIZURE  OF  THE  PRISONER  BY  COLONEL 
KNIGHT,  COMMANDING  THE  U.  S.  CAMP,  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  GREEN  RIVER  AT 
THE  RAILROAD  CROSSING  -  UPRISING  OF  THE  CITIZENS -CONFLICT  BETWEEN 
THE  CITIZENS  AND  THE  MILITARY  — TWO  THOUSAND  CITIZENS  MEET  AND 
ARM  — GREAT  MEETING  ON  THE  PUBLIC  STREET-  THE  CITIZENS  DEMAND  TO 
BE  LED  AGAINST  THE  U.  S.  TROOPS  —  COLONEL  KNIGHT  LOADS  HIS  CANNON 
AND  HOLDS  THF  PRISONER  — LVTER VIEW  BETWEEN  COLONEL  KNIGHT  AND 
A  DEPUTATION  OF  CITIZENS  OF  GREEN  RIVER  — THE  MATTER  OOMPRO>nSED 
BY  REFERRING  IT  TO  GENERAL  MORROW,  COMMANDING  THE  FORCES  AT  FORT 
BRIDGER  — GENERAL  MORROW  TELEGRAPHS  COLONEL  KNIGHT  TO  HOLD  THE 
PRISONER  AT  ALL  HAZARDS  —  GENERAL  AUGUR  COUN'TERMANDS  GENERAL 
MORROW'S  ORDER,  AND  RESTORES  THE  PRISONER  TO  THE  CIVIL  AUTHORI- 
TIES AT  GREEN  RIVER  — THE  ESCAPE  OF  THE  PRISONER  THROUGH  THE 
TREACHERY  OF  THE  DEPUTY  SHERIFF— THE  POWER  OF  MONEY  — THE  IN- 
QUEST UPON  THE  BODY  OF  THE  VICTDI  — THE  MASONIC  BURIAL  OF  THE  ilUB- 
DERED  MAN  IN  THE  OLD  BURIAL  GROUND  OF  FREMONT^  PARTY. 

On  the  banks  of  Green  River,  at  that  point  on  the  line  of  the  old 
stage  road  where  the  ancient  ferry  was  established,  certain  speculative 
spirits  wishing  to  increase  their  worldly  wealth  by  reaping  the  benefits 
of  the  approaching  overland  railroad,  located  a  town  where  the  said 
road  must  necessarily  cross  this  stream,  and  having  subdivided  the 
land  thus  entered  into  building  lots,  proceeded  to  dispose  of  them  at 
round  sums,  and  to  aid  in  the  erection  of  dwelling-houses,  hotels,  stores, 
saloons,  and  places  of  various  business  resort.  It  must  not  be  supposed 
that  any  of  these  edifices  assumed  palatial  proportions.  The}''  were  in 
the  main  constructed  of  sun-dried  bricks  and  otherwise  denominated 
adolje  houses.  Some  of  them  were  built  of  lumber  hauled  from  a  great 
distance  by  slow  freight,  and  many  were  nothing  more  than  canvas 
tents,  divided  into  apartments  by  cuilains  of  the  same  material.  As 
this  was  intended  for  a  "  summer  terminus''  town,  the  climate  delight- 
ful and  storms  of  wind  and  rain  verv  rare  at  such  a  season,  a  canvas 
cover  was  just  as  good  as  any  other. 

234 


ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  235 

It  was,  however,  by  all  such  means  that  the  projectors  and  owners 
of  this  town  site  endeavored  to  push  forward  the  enterprise  and  gain 
such  proportions  as  to  secure  from  the  raili'oad  authorities  a  proper 
recognition  of  the  location  as  a  summer  and  fall  terminus  when  the 
road  should  reach  it.  A  large  number  of  people  flocked  to  this 
embryo  city,  and  quite  a  thriving  business  sprang  up  in  sight  of  the 
castellated  walls  of  mud  that  surrounded  it  on  all  sides  in  the  form  of 
clay  buttes.  ' 

To  preserve  order  in  the  absence  of  courts  and  a  civic  force  during 
the  construction  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad,  the  commander  of  the 
military  district  established  a  post  on  tlie  other  side  of  the  stream  and 
detailed  a  battalion  of  men  from  the  garrison  at  Fort  Bridger  for  service 
at  that  point,  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Knight,  a  very  capable  and 
genial  officer  who  proceeded  to  institute  his  military  authority  by  fix- 
ing his  camp,  stationing  his  pieces  of  artillery,  digging  a  subterranean 
prison  for  dangerous  criminals,  drilling  his  troops  and  enforcing  the 
necessary  discipline. 

Upon  one  occasion  in  the  pursuit  of  my  official  duties,  I  journeyed 
from  Salt  Lake  City  to  this  new  town  with  a  view  of  performing  a 
very  important  piece  of  business.  As  the  result  will  show,  I  came 
very  near  closing  my  official  career  in  a  strange  and  sudden  manner. 

My  sole  companion  during  this  journey  was  a  paymaster  in  the 
United  States  army,  who  had  come  over  from  the  Pacific  coast  to  pay 
off  the  troops  on  the  line  of  the  road  west  of  Green  River.  I  had  a 
slight  acquaintance  with  this  officer  and,  thrown  as  we  were  thus 
closely  together  during  a  lengthy  trip,  our  relations  became  gradually 
friendly  and  confidential  and  remained  so  until  the  time  of  his  sudden 
death. 

I  was  introduced  by  my  friend  on  our  arrival  at  Green  River  City 
to  Colonel  Knight  and  his  brother  officers  of  the  post,  and  became  the 
recipient  of  many  kindnesses  and  attentions  at  their  hands.  At  their 
urgent  request  my  own  headquarters  -was  established  at  their  camp, 
which  served  in  a  marked  degree,  to  smooth  out  tlie  rough  wrinkles  of 
border  life.  Having  passed  several  days  on  official  business,  closely 
occupied  in  its  arrangements  and  details,  during  which  time  the  pay- 
master was  engaged  in  paying  off  the  troops,  and  both  of  us  now 
being  comparatively  free  from  official  restraints,  we  accepted  an  invi- 
tation from  Colonel  Knight  and  several  officers  to  visit  the  town  and 


236  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

review  its  cosmopolitan  features  in  both  daylight  and  darkness.  Ac- 
cordino:lv  we  crossed  the  river  bv  the  ferrv,  securelv  held  bv  huore 
cables,  and  landed  without  accident.  The  wild  town  was  illuminated 
by  lights  and  transparencies  of  all  hues,  and  their  glare  obscured  the 
moon  and  stare  which  "paled  their  ineflfectual  fires"  beneath  such 
brilliant  lustre.  Each  man  vied  with  his  neighbor  to  outshine  his  dis- 
play regardless  of  cost ;  and  oil  was  three  doUars  per  gallon  in  the 
city  of  Salt  Lake.  Saloon,  dance-house  and  gambling  shop  were  in 
full  blast,  and  with  an  occasional  shot  an:l  the  sound  of  the  hurdy- 
gurdy  the  air  was  full  of  rude  life.  It  was  in  fact  a  typical  railroad 
town  of  early  date.  Everywhere  the  Colonel  and  his  friends  were 
treated  with  great  kindness  and  consideration,  and  as  we  refrained  from 
participating  in  any  of  the  amusements,  not  a  single  mishap  occurred 
to  any  of  our  party.  We  were  there  mereh''  to  view  the  varied  sports 
and  games  suited  to  the  tastes  and  inclinations  of  the  guileless  fron- 
tiersman. 

We  delayed  recrossing  the  stream  until  the  arrival  of  the  over- 
land coach  westward  bound,  unwilling  to  disturb  the  tired  ferrymen  who 
were  resting  after  a  day  of  severe  labor.  Midnight  came,  however, 
and  the  coach  had  not  arrived.  Another  hour  passed  and  still  its 
rumbling  wheels  were  not  heard.  We  proceeded  to  the  ferry  and  hal- 
looed across  the  stream  for  the  boat,  but  in  vain.  We  called  in  sten- 
torian tones  to  the  ferrymen,  but  were  answered  not.  Finally,  as  the 
night  was  slipping  awa}'^  and  we  all  needed  rest,  the  Colonel  pix)posed 
that  we  should  attempt  to  cross  over  to  his  camp  in  a  large  skifif  that 
was  tied  to  the  banks  of  the  stream,  a  little  above  the  ferry.  What 
evil  spirit  possessed  us  to  engage  in  such  a  hazardous,  foolhardy  under- 
taking, I  know  not,  indeed,  unless  it  was  the  adventurous  spirit  that 
possesses  all  men  living  ujwn  the  border  and  an  apparent  indifference 
to  danger,  from  its  constant  presence  and  familiarity  that  render  them 
thoughtless  in  their  actions.  But  that  which  added  vastly  to  the  peril 
of  the  adventure  was  the  fact  that  when  in  the  act  of  embarking  in 
the  frail  shell  we  were  joined  by  an  officer  who  had  not  formed  one  of 
the  party  during  the  evening,  who  was  much  under  the  influence  of 
the  ardent  and  who  strenuously  insisted  upon  crossing  the  stream 
with  us. 

With  unaccustomed  hands  the  oars  were  seized  and  we  swept  out 
toward  the  middle  of  the  stream  in  the  total  darkness  of  the  night. 


237 


ECHOES  FROM  THE   KOOKY  MOUNTAINS.  239 

The  gunwales  of  the  little  boat  were  almost  even  with  the  water's 
edge  when  we  were  all  afloat.  As  I  dropped  my  hand  down  and  felt 
the  water  almost  ready  to  pour  over  and  swamp  us,  the  awful  danger 
of  the  situation  flashed  upon  me.  A  little  jar  or  abrupt  movement  on 
the  part  of  a  single  occupant  would  be  sufiicient  to  destroy  its  equi- 
poise and  instanth''  fill  the  boat,  and  our  bodies  would  furnish  food  for 
the  fish  ultimately  in  the  Gulf  of  California.  We  soon  found  also 
that  in  our  inexperienced  hands  the  boat  was  at  the  mercy  of  the 
waters.  It  was  impossible  to  stem  the  mighty  current  of  the  swift 
mountain  stream  whose  velocity  was  measured  alone  by  the  declivity 
of  the  river's  bed.  When  we  first  pushed  from  the  shore  we  were 
half  a  mile  above  the  camp  and  we  headed  directly  for  the  opposite 
banks.  The  moment  we  reached  the  middle  of  the  stream  we  swung 
with  the  tide  and,  notwithstanding  our  most  strenuous  efforts  to  breast 
it,  were  swept  along  with  it.  In  a  short  time  we  passed  the  camp  and 
saw  its  lights  on  the  shore. 

Tlie  Colonel  hailed  the  sentry  and  directed  some  of  the  men  to 
run  along  the  banks  with  a  rope  and  lights.  The  most  favorable  point 
in  our  case  was  that  we  had  drifted  by  the  most  powerful  use  of  the 
oars,  with  the  tide  on  the  farther  side  of  the  stream  and  although  rap- 
idly descending,  were  slowly  working  our  way  nearer  the  shore. 
Whether  we  could  get  within  reach  of  a  friendly  rope  from  the  hands 
of  the  soldiers  running  with  their  lanterns  on  the  shore,  or  Avhether,  by 
a  sudden  change  of  the  current,  or  the  snapping  of  an  oar,  we  should 
again  be  forced  into  the  middle  of  the  stream,  and  finally,  if  not 
swamped,  descend  beyond  aU  human  aid  and  be  dashed  to  pieces  in 
Cataract  Canon,  remained  to  be  determined.  My  mind  was  fully  occu- 
pied with  the  danger  of  the  situation  as,  I  think,  was  that  of  all  the 
others,  unless  it  was  he  who  had  imbibed  too  much.  He  chanced  to 
be  seated  directly  in  front  of  me,  and  knowing  that  a  rude  motion  on 
his  part  would  sink  the  overladen  boat,  I  seized  him  from  behind  with 
a  death  grip  and  braced  him  firmly  with  my  arms,  so  that  he  might 
not  turn  either  to  the  right  or  left.  A  young  wife  and  infant  son 
awaited  my  coming,  and  although  so  near  the  line  of  the  great  divide, 
and  having  them  constantly  in  mind,  I  did  not  lose  my  self  possession 
in  the  imminent  peril  that  had  overtaken  us,  but  determined  calmly  to 
meet  the  danger  manfully  and  do  all  in  my  power  to  aid  in  our  escape. 
I  felt,  however,  that  the  frail  thread  upon  which  all  our  lives  hung  was 


240  tCHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

as  brittle  as  to  be  snapped  by  a  passing  wind.  I  knew  that  unless  we 
reached  the  shore  within  a  mile  or  more  below  the  camp  our  chance  of 
rescue  was  gone,  as  the  bluffs  began  at  that  point,  and  we  would  sweep 
on  to  Cataract  Caiion  and  destruction.  1  felt  that  a  single  lurch  of  the 
helpless  man  now  asleep  in  my  arms,  would  swamp  us  beyond  salvOr 
tion,  and  so  I  held  on  to  him  gently  but  as  firmly  as  the  rocks. 

Such  was  our  situation  when,  by  a  providential  action  (I  shall 
always  believe  it  to  have  been  the  act  of  Providence;  that  He  had 
work  yet  for  us  to  perform)  a  concurrent  movement  of  tide  and  oar, 
we  were  thrown  suddenh'  within  reach  of  the  shore,  and  the  Colonel, 
seated  in  the  bow  of  the  boat,  under  the  flash  of  a  lantern  seized  the 
end  of  a  rope  thrown  quickly  out  by  one  of  the  soldiers,  and  gradually 
we  were  swung  around  by  aid  of  the  oars  to  the  side  of  the  bank, 
whence  we  escajied  to  the  land. 

At  this  remote  day  it  appears  to  me  that  our  first  duty  should 
have  been  to  return  thanks  to  Him  who  had  saved  us.  But  whatever 
might  have  l^een  our  reflections,  there  was  no  outward  expression.  Per- 
haps our  silence  was  our  most  perfect  prayer.  We  landed  nearly  a 
mile  below  the  camp,  and  picking  our  way  along  the  banks  of  the 
treacherous  stream,  whose  waters  came  so  near  being  our  winding-sheets, 
we  soon  reachetl  the  camp  and,  gaining  our  beds,  fell  into  sweet  slumber. 

Was  the  danger  as  great,  as  I  have  picturetl  it,  and  did  we  fully 
realize  it  ?  I  can  not  freely  reply  to  the  second  question.  All  of  us  had 
faced  death  frequently  before  and  since,  and  i>erhaps  we  did  not  fully 
appreciate  the  extent  of  the  danger  until  it  was  passed. 

As  to  the  first  inquiry  I  would  state  that  but  a  few  weeks  after- 
ward the  mayor  of  Cheyenne,  who  was  on  a  visit  to  Green  River  Cit\% 
and  three  companions,  lost  their  lives  in  the  same  perfidious  stream^ 
having  been  swamped  in  a  larger  boat  than  ours,  and  their  bodies, 
caught  within  the  meshes  of  the  swift-rolling  tide,  were  never  more 
revealed  to  friends.  Such,  indeed,  was  the  untimely  fate  that  blotted 
out  many  other  valuable  lives.  Ours  was  a  providential  escape,  and 
the  good  influences  that  are  said  to  watch  over  men  in  houre  of  danger 
must  have  been  thickly  about  us  during  those  moments  of  dire  peril. 

On  my  first  journey  across  the  continent  I  remember  reaching  the 
banks  of  Green  River  and  being  ferried  over  before  daybreak.  This, 
of  course,  was  before  the  railroad  had  penetrated  the  mountains  and 
anterior  to  the  building  of  Green  River  City.    Worn  out  by  the  long 


ECHOES    FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  241 

journey  across  the  desert  plains  and  the  Rockies,  we  entered  the  adobe 
house  on  the  other  side  of  the  stream  which  served  as  a  "  home  station, " 
ana,  wrapping  our  blankets  about  us,  stretched  ourselves  upon  the  floor 
to  enjoy  a  natural  rest  until  awakened  at  daylight  for  breakfast.  This, 
indeed,  was  a  vast  relief  from  the  crowded  coach.  Sancho  Panza  was 
not  more  fervent  than  we  in  our  adulations  and  invocations  to  the 
great  inventor  of  sleep.  Nevertheless,  I  was  aroused  quite  early  by 
the  noise  of  tho  family  movmg  about  in  their  preparations  for  breakfast. 
As  a  stream  of  early  mornmg  sunlight  poured  its  golden  flood  within 
our  windows,  it  fell  upon  the  features  of  as  handsome  a  woman  as  it 
has  been  my  fortune  to  gaze  upon.  I  will  not  attempt  to  describe  her 
beauty,  save  that  it  reveled  in  both  her  face  and  form.  Her  dark 
lustrous  eyes  beamed  from  their  soulful  depths,  and  her  raven  tresses 
fell  in  graceful  folds  upon  her  rounded  arms  and  shoulders.  She  was 
indeed  as  splendid  a  specimen  of  womanly  beauty  as  my  eyes  ever 
feasted  on.  I  gazed  with  surprise  upon  this  magnificent  development 
of  American  womanhood,  and  wondered  deeply  what  influences  could 
have  urged  this  star  of  the  wilderness  within  its  lonely  depths.  She 
who  would  grace  by  her  splendid  beauty  the  salons  of  fashion,  who 
was  brighter  than  that  early  autumn  morn,  when  all  the  heaven  was 
streaked  with  dappled  fires, 

Whose  cheek  had  the  pale  pearly  pink 
Of  sea-shells,  the  world's  sweetest  tint,  as  though 
She  lived,  one  half  might  deem,  on  roses  sopped 

In  pearly  dew, 

and  who  would  be  a  queen  witjiin  those  halls  where  beauty  reigns 
supreme,  and  whose  votaries  would  be  worshipers  at  her  shrine, 
to  take  up  her  lowly  lot  in  the  solitudes  of  a  treeless  and  barren 
waste,  surrounded  by  mountain  walls  of  mud,  a  spot  whose  sole 
animation  was  the  arrival  of  the  coach  load  of  passengers  for  whom 
she  performed  a  menial  service,  was  more  than  I  could  comprehend. 
I  failed  to  fathom  the  mystery,  and  turned  over  in  my  blanket  and 
again  invaded  the  land  of  dreams,  where  a  beautiful  princess  of  the 
marvelous  type  I  had  just  gazed  upon,  appeared  before  me  with  a 
gentle  story  of  love  in  the  same  sweet  strains  we  have  so  often  heard 
in  our  day  dreams  while  wandering  in  the  poetic  fields  of  romance. 

Alas !  for  the  mutability  of  all  human  fancies !  We  were  sud- 
denly aroused  from  our  slumbers  by  a  harsh,  rude  voice,  commanding 
us  in  peremptory  tone,  to  arise  and  dust  ourselves  out  of  the  way  !    In 

16 


243 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


-^ 


m 


a  deep  voice,  rough  with  cruel  emphasis,  we  heard  the  command,  which 
we  instantly  obeyed :  "  Jfow  you  git  out  a  h«re,  right  ofif,  if  you  want 
this  table  sot  for  breakfast  I  "  I  supposed  this  to  be  the  stern  com- 
mand of  a  bull-whacker  from  the  Bitter  Creek,  who  had  been 
engaged  to  "  fire  us  out "  from  the  breakfast  room,  when,  to  my  utter 
amazement,  I  again  beheld  my  Hebe,  my  Yenus,  whose  splendid 
beauty  had  charmed   my  .  \ 

senses.  My  "  Star  of  the 
Wilderness"  dropped  sud- 
denly below  the  horizon 
and  I  dropped  from  the 
lofty  plane  upon  which  a 
Haphael  loves  to  stand  and 
contemplate  the  glory  of 
the  beautiful  and  the  true. 
I  recall  another  inci- 
dent of  this  historic  spot 
of  graphic  interest,  and 
diflfering  greatly  from  any- 
thing I  have  hitherto  re- 
lated. It  was  in  the  year 
1868,  during  the  month  of 
August,  I  think,  that  I  had 
occasion  to  visit  the  em- 
bryo city  of  Green  River. 
As  was  customary,  I  came 
by  coach  from  Salt  Lake 
City,  my  headquarters,  through  Fort  Bridger,  at  that  time  under  the 
command  of  Gen.  Henry  A.  Morrow,  now  colonel  of  the  Twenty- 
first  Regiment,  United  States  Infantry. 

Upon  entering  the  town  I  noticed  quite  a  commotion  among  the 
citizens,  and  much  excitement  of  speech  and  action.  Upon  inquiry  I 
found  that  a  most  unprovoked  and  diabolical  murder  had  been  j^erpe- 
trated  the  previous  day  upon  an  unoffending  man  by  a  desperado; 
that  he  had  been  arrested  by  a  deput}''  sheriff  of  the  county  in  which 
the  city  of  Green  River  was  located,  and  that  while  in  his  custody  a 
sergeant's  guard  of  armed  soldiers,  with  fixed  bayonets,  had  proceeded, 
under  orders  from  Colonel  Knight,  in  command  of  the  military  camp 


¥■ 


$ 


V 


THE  FAMOUS  BEAUTY  AT  GREEN  RIVER  STATION. 


I 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  243 

on  the  other  side  of  the  stream,  and  had  taken  possession  of  the  body 
of  the  murderer  against  the  stern  protests  of  the  people,  and  carried 
him  off  to  their  camp,  at  the  instigation  of  the  murderer's  wife,  who 
claimed  that  the  people  would  lynch  him.  Murders  were  frequent  in 
that  wild  country,  and  the  people  steeled  to  the  blood}'- "mode  of 
revenge,  often  being  the  result  of  old  feuds  among  miners  or  sudden 
duels  between  members  of  the  gambling  fraternity,  and,  generally, 
but  little  thought  was  given  to  the  deed. 

In  this  case,  however,  the  crime  was  committed  without  cause  and 
against  an  unarmed,  inoffensive  citizen  engaged  in  tlie  active  pursuit 
of  a  business  of  reputable  character.  And  withal  there  was  found 
upon  his  person  after  death  the  indubitable  proof  of  his  membership 
of  the  Blue  Lodge  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons,  in  good  standing,  as 
well  as  that  of  a  Royal  Arch  Mason.  In  the  far  West  at  that  time 
there  were  many  Masons,  and  its  mysterious  tenets  of  brotherhood 
were  often  the  means  of- preserving  the  life  and  fortune  of  many  a  lone 
widow's  son,  and  especially  at  this  point  there  seemed  a  larger  pro- 
portion than  in  any  other  town  of  like  character  in  the  far  West  to 
which  I  had  been  called  by  business  or  pleasure. 

For  all  of  these  reasons  the  populace  was  greatly  excited  and 
threatened  dire  revenge  unless  Colonel  Knight  returned  the  prisoner 
in  accordance  with  their  demand.  I  was  requested  to  act  as  exam- 
ining counsel  before  the  jury  of  inquest  which  was  just  then  convening, 
and  found  from  a  searching  exammation,  the  following  to  be  the  facts 
in  the  case. 

The  murderer  was  one  of  a  band  of  desperadoes  who  had  traveled 
along  the  line  of  the  railroad  without  business  of  any  sort,  yet  had 
succeeded  in  gathering  substance  to  the  amount  of  $5,000,  which  vras 
at  that  time  in  the  hands  of  the  woman  who  claimed  to  be  a  Mormon 
and  his  wife. 

The  murdered  man  was  proved  to  have  been  a  merchant,  who  had 
traveled  in  company  with  a  partner  along  the  line  of  the  railroad  with 
a  large  wagon  load  of  sutler's  goods,  establishing  themselves  in  busi- 
ness at  each  of  the  towns  located  as  a  terminus  of  the  road.  The 
evidence  showed  that  he  had  left  his  partner  a  few  miles  out  of 
the  town  and  ridden  ahead  to  obtain  a  location  for  their  tent  by  the 
purchase  of  a  lot  on  one  of  the  business  thoroughfares ;  that  while 
seeking  for  the  location  he  chanced  to  pass  between  two  tents  erected 


244  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

close  by  each  other,  and,  tripping  over  the  ropes  of  one,  unloosed  the 
stake,  which  caused  a  part  of  the  tent  to  falL  This  was  in  broad  da}-- 
light  about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  TSe  occupant  of  the  tent 
seizing  a  double-barreled  shot  gun,  sprang  from  beneath  the  canvas, 
and  with"  terrible  oaths  denounced  the  murdered  man  as  an  intruder 
whose  purpose  was  unlawful. 

In  reply  he  stated  to  the  murderer  that  he  was  an  honest  man 
with  an  honest  purpose;  that  he  was  a  merchant  with  a  load  of  goods, 
just  entering  the  city,  and  was  seeking  a  situation  for  his  tent  with  a 
view  of  purchasing  it  as  a  jjermanent  location;  that  endeavoring  to 
cross  by  a  short  way  to  a  rear  street,  he  accidently  struck  the  ropes 
and  committed  the  damage,  which  he  heartily  regretted  and  was 
willing  at  once  to  repair. 

Instead  of  appeasing  his  wrath,  however,  the  desperado  grew  more 
violent,  denounced  the  merchant  as  a  liar  and,  leveling  his  gun  at  the 
unarmed  man,  shot  him  dead.  The  murderer  was  immediately  taken 
into  custody,  with  the  result  as  above  stated. 

Upon  the  person  of  the  murdered  man  was  found  tie  evidence  of 
his  Masonic  membership  in  the  form  of  a  "  demit "  from  a  regularly 
constituted  lodge — several  letters  breathing  the  warmest  expressions 
of  love  from  his  aflBanced  wife,  together  with  the  picture  of  a  beautiful 
woman  presumed  to  be  the  author  of  the  letters  of  love  and  sympathy. 
He  was  a  tall,  handsome  man  of  about  thirty  years,  and  as  he  lav 
before  us,  with  a  part  of  his  clothing  removed,  revealing  the  ghastly 
wounds  that  ushered  his  spirit  into  the  world  eternal,  and  read  the 
tender  words  of  affection  from  his  far-off  loved  one,  all  unconscious  of 
his  terrible  fate,  our  own  hearts  burned  with  s^^npathy  for  her  wlio 
would  never  ga^e  upon  his  handsome  form  again;  and  more  than  (;ne 
tear  coursed  down  cheeks  bronzed  by  mountain  storms. 

After  the  inquest  had  been  held  and  the  verdict  rendered  in 
accordance  with  the  facts  above  related,  I  went  into  the  main  street  of 
the  town  and  found  a  large  body  of  armed  men  congregated  at  a  point 
midway  between  the  ferry  and  the  place  of  the  inquest.  The  crowd 
continued  to  augment  in  numbers  untU  at  least  five  hundred  men  had 
gathered  with  firmness  and  determination  stamped  upon  each  counte- 
nance. They  were  preparing  to  march  over  to  the  camp,  demand  the 
return  of  the  prisoner,  and  in  the  event  of  a  refusal,  to  take  him  by 
force  from  the  control  of  t>.e  militar3\     They  were  in  the  main  a  class 


V/'i'iJ^^  £■//■  a.  Co  .MY 


ARREST  OF  MURDERER  — CONFLICT  BETWEEN  U.  S.  TROOPS  AND  CITIZENS. 

245 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  247 

of  men  used  to  danger.  Many  of  them  were  grizzled  miners  from  the 
Sweetwater,  expert  in  the  use  of  deadly  weapons,  and  not  slow  to 
use  them  when  occasion  required. 

Among  them  were  stalwart  Indian  fighters — sharpshooters  whose 
trusty  rifles  had  leveled  many  a  savage  foe,  and  in  whose  breasts  the 
sensation  of  fear  had  never  found  lodgement.  Added  to  these  were 
the  class  who  had  followed  the  road  from  its  incipiency  on  the  banks 
of  the  Missouri,  and  who  were  as  familiar  with  scenes  of  blood  and 
deadly  encounters  as  they  were  with  the  people  and  the  towns  they 
inhabited. 

In  the  meantime  information  of  the  uprising  of  the  people  and  the 
proposed  rescue  of  the  prisoner  had  been  conveyed  to  Colonel  Knight. 
He  was  a  man  of  resolution,  a  firm  and  determined  officer,  who  would 
defend  his  action  with  his  life.  He  believed  this  action  to  be  within 
the  line  of  his  duty  and  not  an  arbitrary  assumption  of  power.  He 
therefore  prepared  immediately  for  the  conflict,  ordered  out  every  man 
in  his  command,  shotted  his  field  pieces,  and  quietly  awaited  the 
approach  of  the  rescuing  party. 

Knowledge  of  the  action  of  Colonel  Knight  in  nowise  dampened 
the  ardor  of  the  determined  men  who  proposed  the  rescue  of  the 
prisoner.  What  most  occupied  their  attention  was  the  selection  of 
proper  leaders  and  the  construction,  of  the  disjointed  force  into  some- 
thing like  battalions  so  that,  upon  arrival  at  the  military  head- 
quarters, they  might  present  the  appearance  of  a  compact  organization 
of  men,  rather  than  an  incongruous  and  irresolute  mob.  Modest}'- 
forbids  mention  of  tlie  formal  offer  made  to  me  by  the  most  influential 
of  their  number,  but  it  gave  me  the  opportunity  I  desired,  and  I  did 
not  hesitate  to  embrace  it.  They  were  well  aware  of  the  fact  that 
my  sympathies  were  all  with  them,  as  I  had  denounced  the  act  of 
Colonel  Knight  as  that  of  an  arbitrary  usurpation  of  power  that 
would  meet  with  the  condemnation  of  his  superior  officers.  I,  how- 
ever, believed  that  the  proper  way  to  settle  this  dispute  between  the 
military  and  the  people  was  not  by  force  of  arms.  In  such  a  contest 
most  valuable  lives  would  be  lost,  and  the  issue  be  doubtful.  That, 
while  our  force  was  more  than  five  times  greater  than  that  of  the 
military,  they  were  thoroughly  drilled,  a  compact  body,  with  the 
advantage  of  two  pieces  of  artilery.  I  knew  that  Colonel  Knight  was 
determined  to  maintain  his  authority,  and  would  sacrifice  his  own  life 


248  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    HOCKY    MOUlfTAIXS. 

and  that  of  every  man  of  his  small  command  in  the  attempt.  I  like- 
wise knew  that  every  man  who  marched  to  the  rescue  went  with  the 
determination  to  succeed  or  die.  Among  these  wild  sons  of  mountain 
and  plain,  heroes  of  a  hundred  engagements  with  red  and  white  assassins, 
there  was  no  feelinor  of  fear.  Thev  would  clamber  over  the  sruns  and 
knife  the  gunners.  Still  it  would  be  a  useless  sacrifice  of  life,  and  I 
determined  to  prevent  it  if  jjossible.  In  this  I  was  aided  bv^  many 
other  cool-headed  men  who  urg^ed  me  to  address  the  srathering:  and 
attempt  to  dissuade  them  from  their  extreme  purpose.  Accordingly 
I  mounted  an  old  wagon  that  was  standing  on  the  street  hard  by,  and 
spoke  to  them  in  the  most  earnest  tones  I  could  command. 

I  laid  before  them  the  views  expressed  above,  denounced  the  act 
of  usurpation  on  the  part  of  the  militar}'^  authorities  as  unwarrantable, 
warmly  appealed  for  order  in  the  new  town,  and  |X)inted  out  the  results 
of  a  conflict,  such  as  was  Ukely  to  ensue  if  they  crossed  the  river,  in 
the  destruction  of  the  property  of  the  town  itself,  and  finally  proposed 
that  a  committee  should  be  sent  to  Colonel  Knight,  composed  of  the 
leading  citizens,  who  should  demand  the  return  of  the  prisoner,  and  in 
the  event  of  refusal  his  superior  officers  should  be  notified  of  the 
situation,  and  an  order  be  obtained  from  them  for  the  immediate 
surrender  of  the  prisoner  to  the  civil  authorities. 

Prominent  gentlemen  sustained  my  views  and  seconded  my  sug- 
gestions. There  were,  however,  man}"  Hotspurs  among  the  men,  who 
advocated  an  instant  march  upon  the  miUtia,  and  deemed  it  a  cow- 
ardly surrender  on  our  part  to  fail  to  take  immediate  action.  But 
wiser  counsels  prevailed,  the  committee  was  appointed,  the  gathering 
temjx>rarily  dispersed,  and  the  delegates  appointed  started  immediately 
for  Colonel  Knight's  headquarters.  He  had  kept  himself  well  informed 
of  all  action  taken  by  the  people  and,  aware  of  the  peaceful  mission, 
met  us  with  a  most  cordial  greeting,  remarking,  first  of  all,  "  Gentle- 
men, have  you  dined  ?''  "We  replied  in  the  negative,  stating  that  the 
excitement  was  so  great  among  the  people  that  we  did  not  wait  for 
dinner,  but  concluded  to  visit  him  at  once,  hoping  to  allay  the  tur- 
moil by  some  message  of  promise. 

He  declined  to  talk  over  the  matter  until  we  had  first  dined  with 
him,  and  as  he  was  just  in  the  act  of  sitting  down  when  we  made  our 
appearance,  we  deemed  it  both  impolite  and  impolitic  for  us  to  refuse, 
especially  as  we  were  well  acquainted. 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  249 

After  the  dinner  was  concluded  he  opened  some  bottles,  and  him- 
self began  the  discussion  by  remarking  that  he  did.  not  wish  the  people 
to  look  upon  him  as  an  enemy;  that  his  intercourse  with  them  had 
been  so  pleasant,  hitherto,  that  it  was  with  great  regret  he  was  forced 
to  assume  the  present  attitude;  that  what  he  was  now  doing  he 
believed  to  be  in  strict  conformity  with  the  instructions  conveyed  to- 
him  by  his  commanding  officer  at  Fort  Bridger,  at  the  time  the  military 
camp  was  established  at  Green  River  City,  and  that  nothing  would 
give  him  greater  pleasure  than  to  be  rid  of  the  whole  matter. 

Thereupon  we  suggested  that  a  telegram  be  sent  immediately 
to  General  Morrow  at  Fort  Bridger,  recounting  the  facts  and  asking 
for  instructions  as  to  his  reply  to  the  committee  of  citizens.  At  his 
suggestion  we  prepared  the  dispatch  and  remained  at  his  headquarters 
while  a  messenger  conveyed  it  to  the  operator  with  instructions  to  for- 
ward immediately.  It  was  but  a  short  time  before  the  messenger 
returned  with  the  significant  dispatch  from  General  Morrow, 
addressed  to  Colonel  Knight — "  Hold  the  prisoner  at  all  hazards  ? " 

This  ended  our  interview  with  Colonel  Knight.  We  returned  to 
the  town  to  make  our  report.  The  people  evinced  no  surprise,  but 
exhibited  a  more  kindly  feeling  toward  Colonel  Knight  when  they 
ascertained  his  position. 

The  authority  of  General  Morrow  was  supreme  as  commander  of 
that  military  district.  There  was,  however,  a  still  greater  power 
existing  in  the  commander  of  the  Department  of  the  Platte, 
whose  headquarters  was  at  Omaha.  Accordingly  we  laid  before 
General  Augur,  the  .commander,  the  facts  in  the  case  by  telegram,  and 
our  efforts  were  rewarded  by  a  telegraphic  order  from  that  General 
to  his  subordinates  to  immediately  surrender  the  prisoner  to  the 
civil  authorities. 

On  the  receipt  of  the  said  order  Colonel  Knight  detailed  a  guard 
of  soldiers,  in  charge  of  a  commissioned  officer,  to  convey  the  prisoner 
to  Green  Eiver  City  and  return  him  to  the  custody  of  the  civil  author- 
ities from  whom  he  had  been  summarily  taken  three  da3''s  before. 
Thus  was  the  conflict  of  authority  between  the  people  and  the  military 
finally  adjusted  without  bloodshed,  and  all  affirmed  it  to  have  been  the 
wisest  course. 

The  prisoner  now  being  in  the  custody  of  the  deputy  marshal, 
preparations  were  begun  for  his  immediate  trial,  with  as  much  care 


250  ECHOES   FKOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIifS. 

and  precision  as  would  Lave  been  taken  b\'  the  oflBcers  of  a  court  of 
record.  It  must  be.  borne  in  mind  ibat  at  this  period  there  were  no 
courts  of  any  character  in  that  section  now  constituting,  the  Territory 
of  Wyoming.  The  organic  act  establishing  the  boundaries  and  juris- 
diction of  Wyoming  had  not  become  a  law,  and  all  of  that  section  was 
attached  to  Dakota  for  judicial  purposes.  Yankton  was  the  nearest 
point  for  trial,  distant  some  2,000  miles,  and  every  prisoner  whom 
they  had  attempted  to  convey  to  that  point  for  trial  had  escaped 
or  had  been  rescued  bv  his  friends  from  the  officers  of  the  law  during 
the  long  journey.  The  |)eople,  therefore,  proposed  to  tr}^  this  man  for 
murder  at  the  place  where  the  murder  was  committed,  and  not  trust  to 
the  exigencies  of  a  journev  of  2,000  miles.  First  of  all,  they  proposed 
to  give  him  a  fair  trial,  and  to  promote  this,  certain  rules  were  adopted. 
First,  the  magistrate,  who  had  held  the  coroners  inquest  should 
sit  as  the  presiding  judge,  as  he  was  clothed  to  a  certain  extent  with 
judicial  authority-;  second,  the  prisoner  should  be  provided  with 
counsel  of  his  own  choice;  third,  the  jury  should  be  composed  of 
twenty-four  business  men  of  the  town,  instead  of  the  usual  number  of 
a  petit  jury,  and  that  it  should  require  an  affirmative  expression  of 
guilt  from  three-fourths  of  the  number  before  the  prisoner  could 
be  convicted  of  murder  in  the  first  degree.  Fourth,  all  witnesses 
should  be  sworn  in  accordance  with  the  forms  of  law  and  no  hearsay 
testimony  should  be  admitted.  Fifth,  counsel  for  the  people  should 
be  appointed  to  prosecute  the  case  against  the  prisoner. 

These  rules  having  been  agreetl  upon  with  the  view  of  furthering 
the  cause  of  justice  and  of  protecting  the  rights  <^f  the  prisoner,  the 
jury  was  chosen  and  counsel  appointed  for  the  prisoner  and  for  the 
people. 

I  had  the  honor  to  be  chosen  to  prosecute,  although  I  offered  to 
defend.  The  prisoner  chose  his  own  counsel.  All  the  preliminaries 
having  been  adjusted,  the  case  was  ready  to  proceed  and  the  da}' 
following  set  for  trial.  Darkness  settled  ii]yon  the  land  and  the  town 
slept.  Not  all,  however,  were  wrapped  in  slumber ;  there  were  two 
whose  eyes  had  not  closed.  In  all  ages  of  the  world's  history  gold  lias 
been  the  most  potent  agent  to  move  mankind !  I  have  already  related 
that  the  wife  of  the  prisoner  had  in  her  ix)Ssession  $5,000.  Of  this  I 
had  the  most  positive  proofs  With  this  sum  she  bribed  the  deputy 
sheriff  to  aid  the  prisoner's  escape.     In  the  night  this  pseudo  officer 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  251 

of  the  law  obtained  two  horses,  and  he  and  the  prisoner  rode  away 
together  and  escaped  into  the  mountains. 

Morning  dawned,  and  prisoner  and  officer  were  gone.  Mounted 
men  rode  in  every  direction,  scoured  the  country  far  and  wide,  but 
returned  without  the  murderer.  It  was  alleged  afterward  that  he  had 
been  secreted  by  the  Mormons.  He  was  never,  however,  brought  to 
justice,  and  thus  ended  the  prosecution.  The  abandoned  horses  were 
found  some  days  afterward  and  returned  to  their  owners. 

Some  three  miles  distant  from  Green  River  City,  at  the  foot  of  a 
mountain,  was  a  little  graveyard,  long  since  abandoned,  in  which  were 
buried  some  of  Fremont's  explorers,  who  had  perished  from  privations 


FLIGHT  OF  PRISONER  AND  DEPUTY  FROM  GREEN  RIVER. 

and  sufferings  during  his  memorable  struggles  through  the  wilderness. 
It  was  in  a  most  secluded  spot,  not  far  from  where  the  waters  of  the 
Green  rolled  on  their  precipitous  course.  It  was  in  this  quiet  place, 
linked  with  the  memories  of  a  mighty  achievement,  that  we  laid  away 
to  his  final  rest  the  mortal  remains  of  the  murdered  man. 

It  was  a  beautiful  sunny  day  in  the  glorious  atmosphere  peculiar 
to  that  region,  the  heavens  flecked  with  blue,  a  part  of  nature's 
system  of  divinity,  and  in  the  holy  calm  of  silence  like  the  Sabbath, 
broken  only  by  the  song  of  the  river,  that  we  followed  the   long 


252  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

winding  way  leading  to  the  quiet  little  gi-aveyard,  where  Fremonts* 
dead  were  sleeping.  We  were  on  our  way  to  .Jay  our  brother  to  rest 
with  the  heroes  of  the  storm-beaten  heights,  the  gods  of  the  solitudes. 
Above  his  grave  we  chanted  the  mournful  Masonic  dirge,  and  threw 
the  cypress  on  his  coffin  lid.  He  sleeps  far  from  his  own  home  valley 
and  the  loved  ones,  who  await  in  vain  for  his  coming  ;  but  the  moun- 
tains and  stars  watch  over  him,  and  the  rolling  river  forever  chants  a 
dirge  to  his  memory. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

fBOM  GREEN  RIVER  TO  SALT  LAKE-PORT  BRIDGER  AND  ITS  COMMAND  — STORIES 
OF  THE  INDIANS  — OLD  "JUDGE"  CARTER  —  THE  INDIAN  SCOUT,  "JIM 
BRIDGER,"  WHO  NEVER  SAW  ANY  BAD  WHISKY;  "SOME  OF  IT  MIGHT  BE 
BETTER  THAN  ANOTHER,  BUT  ALL  OF  IT  WAS  GOOD"  — COBBLE-STONE  HILL  — 
THROUGH  ECHO  AND  WEBER  CANONS  — THE  WONDERS  OF  THE  CANONS  — 
THE  "DEVIL'S  GATE"  AND  PULPIT  ROCK —  " RATTLE-SNAKE  HILLS"— THE 
GREAT  DEAD  SEA  OF  THE  WEST-ZION'S  CITY -THE  MIGHTY  WAHSATCH  — 
DESCRIPTION  OF  PUBLIC  AND  PRIVATE  BUILDINGS -THE  TITHING  HOUSE 
AND  TEMPLE  — BRIGH AM  YOUNG'S  ABODE  — THE  LION  HOUSE  — THE  HOUSE 
WITH  MANY  GABLES  — ENDOWMENT  HOUSE  — DESCRIPTION  OF  SCENERY  IN 
THE  VALLEY  — BRIGHAM  YOUNG  — HIS  WIVES  — THE  FAVORITE  AMELIA  — 
THE  ROMANCE  OF  HER  EARLY  COURTSHIP  — THE  HOMES  AND  AVOCATIONS 
OF  BRIGHAM'S  WIVES—  HABITS  AND  BUSINESS  LIFE  OF  THE  MORMONS  — SALT 
LAKE  THEATRE -JOHN  McCULLOUGH. 

From  Green  River  to  Fort  Bridger  the  road  was  not  particularly 
inviting  or  interesting,  altliough  at  points  the  scenery  was  beautiful 
and  picturesque.  On  the  banks  of  Hams  Forks  I  recall  the  millions 
upon  millions  of  bloodthirsty  mosquitoes  of  such  ravenous  instincts  as 
to  devour  you  alive  ! 

At  Fort  Bridger  began  the  descent  of  the  western  slope  of  the 
mountains.  Here  w^as  located  an  encampment  of  United  States  troops 
sometimes  numbering  a  whole  regiment.  Here  various  Indian  tribes 
assembled  at  stated  periods  to  receive  from  the  agent  of  the  Govern- 
ment their  annual  supplies.  Here  old  Washakie's  band  of  Snakes  often 
executed  their  war  dances  and  once  the  sun  dance  for  the  amusement 
and  gratification  of  the  soldiers  and  citizens  of  that  place.  Here  lived 
old  Judge  Carter,  the  sutler  of  this  fort  —  a  man  of  large  wealth,  con- 
siderable education  and  many  quaint  manners.  The  traveler  was 
always  welcome  at  his  hospitable  board  and  never  failed  to  praise  his 
good  stabling  and  liquors;  for  the  "Judge"  was  famous  in  all  that 
broad  expanse  for  his  discriminating  taste  in  the  selection  of  his  wine 
and  cigars.  Here  likewise  lived  another  noted  character  of  the  soli- 
tudes, old  Jim  Bridger,  after  whom  the  pass  was  named.  He  was  a 
famous  trapper  and  hunter,  who  had  dwelt  for  many  years  in  that 
region  before  the  advent  of  the  white  man.     He  had  a  squaw  for  a 

253 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS.  254 

wife  and  a  large  family  of  half-breeds.  He  was  a  brave  and  fearless 
soldier  of  these  Alpine  heights  and  bore  the  .^cars  of  many  honorable 
conflicts.  He  was  noted  far  and  wide  for  his  many  quaint  savings 
and  possessed  great  jwwers  of  story-telling,  and  loved  to  dwell  upon 
the  reminiscences  of  his  strange  life  when  the  cockles  of  his  heart  were 
warmed  by  a  few  strong  and  deep  potations.  Old  Bridger  said  he 
"never  in  all  his  life  and  varied  fortunes  saw  any  bad  whisky.  It 
was  all  good !  True,  some  was  better  than  another,  but  it  was  all 
good  !     There  never  was  any  bad   whisky  ! " 

General  Morrow  commanded  the  troops  at  the  fort  during  my 
sojourn  in  the  Rocky  Mountains.  I  found  him,  upon  close  intercourse, 
to  be  a  gentleman  and  a  scholar.  Our  intimacy  ripened  into  a  friend- 
ship which  has  survived  the  lapse  of  years.  He  is  now  colonel  of  the 
Twenty-first  Infantry,  United  States  army. 

The  road  from  Bridger,  through  crest  and  gorge,  is  rough,  stom^ 
and  diflBcult.  I  think  no  one  who  has  ever  descended  Cobblestone 
HiU  will  ever  forget  the  ride.  A  round  mountain,  covered  every  foot 
of  the  way  by  smooth  cobblestones,  such  as  in  primitive  times  were 
used  to  pave  some  of  our  larger  cities,  notably  the,  streets  of  the 
Federal  Capital.  So  thickly  were  they  strewn  that  it  was  impossible 
to  clear  the  way  of  these  obnoxious  formations,  and  at  each  step  the 
coach  or  mountain  hack  lurched  violently  to  the  right  or  left  as  the 
wheels  crunched  amid  the  stones.  How  they  ever  got  there  in  such 
quantities  I  know  not.  I  think  the\'  must  have  rained  down  from 
some  planet  overhead  which,  having  a  superahundance,  just  oj^ened  its 
port  holes  in  the  skies  and  dropped  them  into  space.  Fortunately,  or 
otherwise,  they  fell  upon  Cobblestone  Hill  and  lie  there  today,  a 
memento  of  the  rough  experience  of  the  old  overland  traveler. 

But  still,  foot  by  foot,  we  drop  down  from  these  lofty  Sierras  to 
.  more  fertile  spots  made  habitable  for  man.  At  Bear  River  Station, 
destined  later  on  to  become  during  the  construction  of  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  the  scene  of  a  busy  mart  and  the  cemetery  of  many  a  bold 
pioneer,  as  well  as  bloodthirsty  outlaw,  was  a  small  Mormon  settlement, 
presided  over  by  a  bishop  of  that  church.  Here  we  stopped  for  rest 
and  refreshment  before  hurrying  on  through  Echo  Canon,  one  of  the 
grandest  and  most  beautiful  sjx)ts  amid  the  wilderness  of  scenery  of 
that  wild  mountain  range.  For  thirty  miles  we  pass  through  a  deep 
rock}'  gorge,  nearly  three-fourths  of  a  mile  wide  at  its  head.     On  i:s 


ECHO  CANON. 


265 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  257 

rio-ht  are  lofty  precipitous  cliffs  that  rise  up  500  feet  at  various  points, 
bare  and  brown  and  wave-washed  by  the  storms  that  beat  upon  them 
in  Alpine  gales,  with  foothills  lying  at  an  angle  of  45"  from  northeast 
to  southeast. 

On  the  left,  protected  from  the  driving  storms  of  wind  and  rain, 
lies  a  succession  of  sloping  hills  filled  with  green  verdure,  swelhng 
upward  to  a  considerable  height,  while  far  below  them  in  the  center 
of  the  gorge  sparkles  a  bright  transparent  stream.  Here,  for  ages  it 
has  with  unceasing  effort  ground  its  way  through  rock  and  boulder 
until  it  has  carved  a  channel  bed  twenty-four  feet  deep.  All  the  earth 
is  clothed  in  grasses,  the  rocks  with  mosses  and  the  border  of  the  river 
with  green  swar^  overshadowed  by  the  foliage  of  the  quaking-asp  and 
Cottonwood. 

Midway  through,  the  cafion  narrows  almost  to  a  defile.  But  the 
scenery  becomes  grander  and  the  artistic  view  more  complete.  The 
stream  grows  wilder  and  deeper  and  its  banks  more  vertical.  It  leaps 
over  rocks  and  boulders  that  intercept  its  pathway  like  a  giant  break- 
ing the  withes  of  straw  with  which  the  Lilliputians  have  bound  him. 
The  lofty  cliffs  assume  fantastic  forms.  Pyramids  and  pinnacles,  spires 
and  towers,  battlemented  fortresses  and  mimic  cathedrals.  Devil's 
Slides  and  Jacob's  Ladders,  and  every  conceivable  form  of  wind-worn, 
rain-beaten  rock  and  earth  greet  the  eye  in  a  continuous  panorama. 

At  one  point  the  crags  and  cliffs  have  become  so  worn  by  time 
and  the  vicissitudes  of  wintry  season  as  to  assume  the  form  and  shape 
of  an  old-time  church  pulpit,  and  so  the  pioneers  of  the  valley  named 
it  Pulpit  Rock.  Farther  on  and  near  the  mouth  of  Echo  Canon,  which 
we  closely  observe  as  we  sweep  into  the  Arcadian  valley  of  the  Weber, 
sleeping  in  quiet  beauty  beneath  the  towering  cliffs,  is  that  strange 
formation  of  the  rocks  so  weird  and  ghost-like,  so  spectral  in  its  wizard 
looks,  that  the  early  settlers,  faithful  to  its  prototype,  gave  it  the 
soubriquet  of  "  The  Witch's  Hocks."  Here,  in  this  quiet  spot,  after  our 
long  and  perilous  ride,  almost  within  sight  of  the  spires  of  Salt  Lake 
,City,  fain  would  we  rest  in  sweet  and  deep  repose,  while  the  towering 
bocks  and  sentinel  cliffs  kept  watch  and  ward  over  our  peaceful 
[slumbers. 

But  the  tireless  mail,  the  evangel  of  the  wilderness,  the  missionary 
of  civilization,  the  herald  of  a  progressive  era  and  the  true  type  of 
enlightened   social  order,  will  not   brook  delay.     Onward   we   press 

17 


258  ECHOES    FfiOM    THE    KOCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

through  Weber  Vallev,  close  bv  the  side  of  its  curiouslv  windino* 
stream  that  flows  into  the  Great  Salt  Basin  near  Fremont's  Island. 
The  valley  through  which  we  now  journe^  is  exceedingly  narrow 
compared  with  others  we  have  traversed.  Its  slopes,  however,  are 
clothed  with  living  green  and  decked  with  wild  flowers. 

We  know  we  are  rapidly  nearing  a  large  center  of  civilization,  as 
we  find  its  overflow  scattered  all  through  this  valley.  At  each  avail- 
able point  we  behold  fields  of  waving  grain,  wheat  and  barley,  planted 
and  encouraged  by  the  hand  of  Mormon  industry. 

The  grand  feature  of  this  valley,  and  the  only  point  of  wild 
scenery  that  partakes  of  sublimity  is  the  DeviTs  Gate,  a  breach  in  the 
barrier  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  might  well  serve  as  the  poi-tals 
to  some  charmed  spot,  whose  wild  enchantments  enravish  the  senses. 
It  is,  however,  but  the  gateway  to  the  peaceful  Yalle}'  of  the  Saints. 
It  is  the  final  touch  of  the  mighty  hand  of  nature,  whose  uplifted  arm 
had  in  the  bj^gone  ages  smote  the  mountain  wall  and  forged  the  way 
for  the  tiny  stream  to  the  lake.  It  is  the  parting  gift  of  grandeur,  of 
wild  picturesque  splendor,  that  greets  the  eye  of  the  traveler  along 
the  sublime  heights  he  has  traversed,  as  if  by  a  mighty  effort  all  else 
should  be  eclipsed  in  this  final  labor  to  leave  upon  the  mind  of  man  an 
imperishable  impress  of  the  awful  majesty  of  nature.  Perpendicular 
cliffs  on  either  side  shoot  suddenly  upward  500  feet  in  the  air. 
Kowhere  between  them  is  the  space  more  than  a  hundred  feet  wide  and 
frequently  not  more  than  forty  feet. 

The  entire  length  of  the  gap  is  700  feet.  Its  lofty  walls  are  com- 
posed of  dark  gray  granite,  crossed  by  trap  dykes,  and  the  rock  in 
which  the  river  has  carved  its  wondrous  channel  runs  through  the 
extreme  southern  shoulder  of  a  ridge  peculiarly  named  "  Rattlesnake 
Hills." 

Through  this  abyss  sweeps  and  plunges  the  rapid  stream,  rolling 
in  eddying  billows  around  rocky  points ;  roaring  over  massive  boulders 
that  have  tumbled  from  the  vast  heights  above,  or  cast  there  by  some 
mighty  upheavel  of  the  mountains ;  leaping  in  wild,  mad  fury  from 
rock  to  rock,  dashing  its  white  foam  against  the  walls,  awakening  the 
echoes  with  its  unceasing  song  of  intermingled  merry  laughter  of  rip- 
pling waves,  and  the  roar  of  a  dirge  as  solemn  and  profound  as  that 
over  a  martyr's  grave,  as  it  plunges  onward  over  rock  and  boulder,  a 
mass  of  seething,  boiling  waters  to  the  quiet  stream  that   henceforth 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


259 


flows  peacefully  on  to  the  saline  depths  of  the  Great  Dead  Sea  of  the 
West. 

The  first  allusion  to  this  remarkable  body  of  salt  water,  surrounded 
by  streams  and  springs  of  fresh  water  is  to  be  found  in  Baron  La  Hon- 
tan's  account  of  his  American  Travels  in  1689.  As  hitherto  men- 
tioned in  this  volume,  John  C.  Fremont  first  explored  and  described  it, 
after  traversing  both  its  northern  and  southern  boundaries  in  1842. 
Subsequently  it  was  surveyed  by  Captain  Stansbury,  of  the  United 
States  army,  and  still  later  by  Captain  R.  F.  Burton,   an   African 


DEVIL'S  GATE-WEBER  CANON. 

explorer.  It  lies  in  a  great  valley  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  meas- 
ures nearly  one  hundred  miles  in  length  by  a  little  less  than  fifty  miles 
in  breadth.  Kear  its  center  lie  a  group  of  islands,  upon  some  of  which 
are  found  springs  of  pure  fresh  water,  although  the  waters  of  the  lake 
are  of  such  saline  character  that  from  seven  quarts  of  the  same  boiled 
down  there  is  extracted  one  quart  of  pure  salt.  It  is  untenanted  by 
any  living  thing.  Tet  into  this  great  saline  lake  pour  continually  from 
the  south  through  the  channel  of  the  Jordan  the  fresh  waters  of  Utah 
Lake,  and  from  the  north  the  fresh,  pure  waters  of  Bear  River,  a  swift 
mountain  stream.  "While  there  is  at  present  no  visible  outlet  and  its 
superfluity  declared  to  be  evaporated,  many  there  are  who  believe  in 
the  existence  of  a  subterranean  passage-way  that  flows  forth  at  some 


260  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXR. 

undiscovered  point;  and  this  they  hold  to  be  no  more  remarkable  as  a 
theory  than  the  visible  results  of  certain  agencies  upon  mountain  riv- 
ers that  are  suddenly  lost  to  view  within  what  they  describe  to  be  vast 
subterranean  outlets  to  the  ocean.  The  Lost  Kiver  of  California  and 
the  Humboldt,  of  Xevada,  are  instanced  as  such  streams,  that,  foUow- 
ins:  a  water  course  of  hundreds  of  miles,  finally  and  suddenly  sink 
from  the  sight  of  man  within  the  cavernous  depths  of  the  earth. 

A  certain  class  of  scientists  has  urged  that  Great  Salt  Lake  is  a 
branch  of  the  sea,  and  one  among  them,  Prof.  Clarence  King, 
declares,  as  already  stated,  that  he  has  discovered  its  outlet  to  the 
ocean  through  the  gateway  of  Snake  River.  There  is,  however, 
another  class  who  differ  materially  upon  this  point.  Their  theory 
does  not  admit  of  this  great  mysterious  inland  sea  as  a  part  of  the  dis- 
tant Pacific,  but  a  small  remnant  of  a  great  system  of  fresh  water 
lakes,  similar  to  the  existing  St.  Lawrence  chain.  American  geolo- 
gists declare  that  at  a  remote  period  a  vast  sheet  of  water,  which  they 
named  Lake  Bonneville,  filled  a  far  greater  valley  than  that  of  the 
present  Salt  Lake  Yalley.  They  declare  that,  as  it  lay  among  the  out- 
liers of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  it  spread  over  a  surface  of  300  miles  in 
one  direction  and  ISO  miles  in  another  direction.  Beside  this  vast 
primitive  sea  lay  a  great  second  sheet,  which  they  named  Lake  La  Hon- 
tan,  an  early  Huron  beside  its  Superior,  almost  as  large  and  equally  as 
fresh.  In  the  mighty  intervals  of  time,  as  indefinite  as  the  geological 
periods,  certain  changes  in  the  rainfall,  unregistered  by  any  living  hand, 
caused  the  watei'S  of  these  great  lakes  to  shrink  and  evaporate.  Lake 
La  Hontan  disapj^eared  entirely,  and  Lake  Bonneville  shrank  until  it 
reached  the  present  diminutive  size  of  the  existing  Great  Salt  Lake.  This 
fact  is  evidenced  by  the  various  terraces  running  in  long  parallel  lines 
on  the  sides  of  the  Wahsatch  range  of  mountains.  These  terraces 
mark  the  various  levels  at  which  the  waters  remained  for  awhile  in 
their  gradual  downward  course.  The  waters  are  still  falling,  and  the 
white  shores  of  the  lake,  covered  with  an  incrustation  of  salt,  mark 
where  once  its  briny  waves  rolled  out  of  sight.  I  have  clambered  up 
the  sides  of  the  AVahsatch  Mountains  to  the  water  lines,  so  plainly  visi- 
ble to  the  naked  eye,  and  picked  out  of  the  rocks  the  formations  of  shells 
and  pebbles  deposited  in  remote  periods  upon  those  ancient  sea  lines. 

But  the  question  is  asked  :  If  this  theory  of  fresh- water  lakes  l>e 
correct,  why,  then^  is  the  remnant  so  briny  that  from  seven  quarts  of 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  261 

water  from  Great  Salt  Lake,  boiled  down,  you  extract  one  quart  of 
pure  salt  ?  That  may  be  one  of  the  mysteries  not  to  be  unfolded  to 
our  entire  satisfaction.  Yet  the  geologist  advances  a  theory  which  is 
generally  accepted  as  its  solution.  They  hold  that  in  the  product  of 
fresh-water  ponds  and  lakes  there  is  a  small  quantity  of  salt  held  in 
solution,  brought  to  them  by  their  connecting  streams  or  rivers,  and 
that  as  the  waters  of  hypothetical  Lake  Bonneville  slowly  evaporated, 
all  their  mineral  constituents  remained  until  the  solution  grew  more 
and  more  concentrated,  until  at  the  present  time  its  saline  properties 
are  so  very  great. 

Another  property  of  the  water  is  its  density.  It  is  next  to  im- 
possible to  sink  to  its  bottom.  You  float  on  the  water  in  spite  of  your- 
self, and  so  dense  are  the  waters  through  their  sahne  properties  that 
stalactites  of  salt  are  formed  on  the  steps  of  the  bathing  resorts,  pro- 
duced fromthe  drippings  from  the  bodies  of  bathers  as  they  leave  the 
waters.  And  yet  the  mineral  constituents  of  these  waters  differ  mate- 
rially in  their  proportions  from  those  found  in  salt  lakes  of  marine 
origin,  and  many  centuries  must  intervene  before  that  point  shall  be 
reached,  when  the  salt  shall  be  thrown  down  in  such  quantities  by 
evaporation  of  the  water  as  to  make  the  great  lake  "a  pillar  of  salt." 

I  am  clearly  of  the  opinion,  and  I  think  the  evidence  is  complete, 
that  in  geologic  ages  a  vast  inland  sea  occupied  the  basin  lying 
between  the  eastern  range  of  the  Sierra  Madre  and  the  western  ridges 
of  the  Humboldt  Range,  This  vast  sea  doubtless  covered  an  area  of 
150,000  square  miles  and  possessed  an  outlet  to  the  ocean  through 
Snake  River.  This  former  outlet  Mr.  Clarence  King,  the  explorer, 
declares  he  discovered  in  1869,  and  traced  its  outline  to  the  Pacific 
ocean  through  the  stream  now  known  as  Snake  River.  By  the  gradual 
elevation  of  the  land  the  waters  became  depressed  until  they  reached 
the  lowest  basin  now  in  existence  and  then  different  stages  of  depress- 
ion, numbering  in  all,  it  is  stated,  thirteen  stages  or  benches,  as  clearly 
to  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye,  and  are  700  feet  above  the  present 
level  of  the  lake. 

One  of  the  remarkable  points  of  interest  in  this  land  of  wonders  is 
the  black  rock,  a  huge  flinty  rock,  solitary  and  alone,  which  in  some 
remote  period  had  rolled  from  a  vast  height  into  the  lake,  or  been 
burled  to  its  lowly  bed  by  a  vast  upheaval  of  the  earth.  A  most  beau- 
tiful view  is  the  great  lake  and  black  rock  by  moonlight.    The  reflection 


262  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

of  the  silvery  moon  upon  the  mammoth  rock  and  its  glitter  on  the 
waters  around  it  form  a  striking  feature  of  the,blending  of  soft  colors, 
reminding  one  of  the  blended  "  snow  and  moonlight "  in  a  winter 
valley. 

We  are  now  at  the  base  .of  the  snowy  summit  of  the  vast  Wah- 
satch  Kangeand  inside  of  the  Salt  Lake  Basin.  How  beautiful  was  the 
scene  that  stretched  before  us  at  this  glorious  season  of  the  year,  as  we 
drove  onward  toward  the  city  of  rest.  The  green  and  gold  of 
the  harvest  field,  broad  fields  thick  with  vellow  sunflowers,  fraffrant 
blossoms  in  the  gardens  of  the  settlers,  pink  and  golden  fruit  on  bend- 
ing boughs  of  trees,  purple  moss  on  the  ridges  of  the  hilltops,  a  green 
landscape  dotted  with  gardens,  streams  and  shining  lakelets  glowing  in 
the  splendors  of  the  meridian  sun,  on  our  right  the  luminous  expanse 
of  the  great  Salt  Lake  encircled  b}'  a  long  line  of  dim  blue  mountains, 
which  the  Indians  called  the  Oquirrh ;  on  our  left,  towering  above  us, 
reaching  to  the  skies,  the  lofty  Wahsatch  with  its  snow-clad  summit, 
and  far  away  in  illimitable  shadows  of  mists  and  gray,  intermingled 
with  glowing  sunlight,  stretched  the  wonderful  city  of  the  wilderness, 
built  far  out  from  the  paths  of  civilization,  on  a  barren  and  inhospit- 
able shore,  but  made  to  blossom  as  the  rose  by  the  hand  of  Mormon 
skill  and  industry. 

The  River  Jordan  flows  on  the  extreme  right  into. the  great  lake, 
and  Warm  Spring  Lake  proceeds  from  a  subterranean  stream  of  almost 
boiling  sulphur  water  that  flows  from  beneath  the  mountains.  The 
incrustations  or  stalactites  of  sulphur  hanging  from  the  outer  edge  of 
the  roof  of  the  cave  make  the  spot  so  ghastly  in  appearance  as  if  to 
denote  the  near  proximity  of  Shed,  or  to  declare  that  this  was  its 
portal  or  the  open  jaws  of  a  frightful  dragon  guarding  the  approach 
to  the  home  of  the  genius  of  the  mountains.  And  the  Great  Salt 
Lake  and  the  Warm  Sulphur  Spring  Lake  lie  side  by  side  beneath  the 
deep  purple  shadows  of  the  mountains  following  the  line  of  broken 
summits  that  are  reflected  on  their  glassy  surface. 

Ascending  Wahsatch  Mountain  we  behold  the  deep  ravine  of 
"  Red  Butte,"  from  which  was  quarried  the  ferruginous  sandstone  used 
in  the  erection  of  the  Mormon  Temple.  A  little  beyond  it  lies,  in  its 
lone  solitude,  Cemetery  Hill,  and  still  farther  to  the  north  City  Creek 
Caiion,  which  supplies  fresh  water  to  the  thirsty  city.  And  this  is  the 
way  the  Caiion  got  its  name.     The  Prophet,  Brigham  Young,  declared 


ECHOLS     IU().M    TUL    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  263 

that  the  location  of  the  site  of  the  forthcoming  city  was  indicated  to 
him  in  a  vision  by  an  angel  who,  standing  on  a  conical  hill,  pointed  to 
him  the  locality  where  the  new  temple  must  be  built.  Upon  the  entry 
of  the  Mormon  pioneers  into  the  Salt  Lake  Basin  be  beheld  the  iden- 
tical mountain  he  had  seen  in  the  vision,  a  stream  of  fresh  water  run- 
ning in  its  cool  depths  at  its  base.  The  Prophet  immediately  com- 
manded his  followers  to  halt  and  pitch  their  permanent  tents,  as  they 
had  finally  arrived  at  the  site  of  the  city  of  the  New  Jerusalem.  He 
immediately  named  the  mountain  "  Ensign  Peak,"  and  the  stream  at 
its  base  City  Creek ;  that  other  and  larger  stream  of  fresh  water 
beyond  its  water  gate  of  Mountain  Point  he  named  after  the  old  his- 
torical stream  of  the  Jews,  the  Jordan.  Here  the  people  were  com- 
manded to  "  wash  "  as  of  old. 

Immediately  on  the  north  upon  the  high  bench  overlooking  the 
city  itself,  and  commanding  a  splendid  view  of  the  river  plain;  of  Camp 
Douglas,  with  its  white  tents  shimmering  in  the  sunlight,  the  home  of 
the  soldiers  of  Uncle  Sam;  of  the  terraces  leading  to  the  Wahsatch, 
that  noble  range  of  pinnacled  snow-clad  mountains;  of  the  Western 
Range  forming  the  western  rim  of  the  Great  Basin  and  the  magnifi- 
cent stretch  of  the  whole  vallej^  until  it  converges  to  the  pass  entering 
into  Utah  Yalley,  stands  the  imposing  residence  of  Brigham  Young, 
called  the  "White  House.  Here  the  Prophet  dwelt  with  many  of  his 
wives  and  children. 

The  gateway  leading  through  this  enclosure,  a  high  wall  of  sun- 
dried  brick,  covered  with  a  composition  of  stucco,  is  of  unique  design. 
It  is  surmounted  by  a  plastic  group,  composed  of  an  immense  vulture- 
eagle  perched  with  outstretched  wings,  upon  a  yellow  bee-hive,  the 
Mormon  device  of  industry.  The  White  House  is  not  only  a  "  house 
of  seven  gables,"  but  many  more,  this  being  its  distinguishing  feat- 
ure. Near  by  is  a  little  clock-turreted  building  which  was  the  private 
school-house  of  the  Prophet's  numerous  children. 

Kot  far  away  is  the  Lion  House,  which  derives  its  name  from  a 
large  stone  lion  placed  over  the  pillars  of  its  portico.  West  of  this 
lies  the  private  office,  in  which  visitors  are  received  ;  and  still  farther 
westward,  connected  therewith  by  a  corridor,  the  public  office  where 
the  functions  of  civil  and  religious  business  are  exercised.  A  little 
beyond  in  the  same  direction  is  located  the  mansion  called  the  Bee 
Hive,  from  the  design  of  a  bee  hive  carved  upon  its  facade.     In  this 


264  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

large  yellowish  building,  with  its  sides  fronting  east  and  west,  and  its 
lower  tier  of  oblong  windows  securely  barred/jlived  and  labored  many 
of  the  Prophet's  wives. 

On  the  extreme  west  of  the  executive  block  lies  the  Tithing 
house  and  Deseret  store.  This  is,  a  large  three-storied  building  with 
numerous  cellars,  store-rooms,  receiving-rooms,  pay-rooms  and  offices. 
Here  are  collected  and  stored  all  the  vast  tithes  of  the  products  of 
Mormon  industry  in  each  and  every  department  of  their  skill  and 
labor — the  resultant  of  that  system  of  tithing  which  compels  each 
individual  member  of  the  church  to  devote  to  its  support  one-tenth  of 
all  the  products  of  his  or  her  labor.  These  possessions  of  the  church 
alwa3's  found  a  ready  sale,  and  its  revenues  were  thus  easily  converted 
into  cash,  Brigham  Young,  as  its  Prophet,  ruled  the  church  with  an 
iron  hand,  and  not  even  the  poorest  and  most  poverty-stricken  member 
ever  failed  to  contribute  his  share  to  the  general  fund.  1  believe  that 
in  many  cases  these  tithings  were  a  voluntary  offering,  but  there  was 
a  large  class  who  could  iU  afford  to  part  with  the  smallest  portions  of 
the  products  of  their  labor.  Still  they  were  compelled  to  pay,  and 
often  in  my  wanderings  over  the  Territory  I  have  heard  them  complain 
of  the  harshness  of  the  rule  that  compelled  them  to  divide  their  sub- 
stance with  the  leaders  of  the  church.  As  trustee  in  trunt  for  the 
church  of  Latter  Day  Saints,  Brigham  Young  was  the  sole  beneficiary 
of  this  vast  fund.  In  other  words  he  held  absolute  control  of  these 
tithings,  and  while  doubtless  a  considerable  portion  of  the  fund  was 
used  for  ecclesiastical  objects,  such  as  the  erection  of  the  Temple,  the 
repairs  of  the  Tabernacle,  and  the  assistance  of  the  needy  emigrants, 
yet  the  greater  portion  was  securely  retained  by  the  chief  of  this 
religious  sect.  It  was  stated  upon  the  authority  of  the  late  George 
Peabody,  the  American  London  Banker,  during  his  last  visit  to  this 
country,  that  President  Brigham  Young  was  the  second  largest 
depositor  in  the  Bank  of  England.  He  was  a  shrewd  business  man, 
and  was  careful  to  deposit  his  means  where  they  could  not  be  reached 
by  any  process  of  litigation  in  this  country,  if  the  time  should  ever 
come  when  such  a  course  should  be  attempted. 

Adjoining  the  Tithing  house  was  a  two-storied  building  forty- 
five  feet  square,  which  contained  the  printing  and  publishing  office 
of  the  Deseret  News,  organized  in  1850  as  the  official  organ  of  Brigham 
Youn^^  and  the  church.     At  that  time  it  was  edited   by  George  Q. 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG. 


i»5 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  267 

Cannon,  a  man  of  considerable  erudition,  afterward  a  delegate  in 
Congress  from  Utah  who  was  unseated  on  account  of  his  violation 
of  the  law  relating  to  plurality  of  wives. 

Directly  across  Main  Street  and  still  farther  west  was  located 
Temple  Block,  a  square  piece  of  ground  covering  ten  acres  and 
surrounded  on  all  sides  by  an  adobe  wall  ten  feet  high,  covered  with 
stucco,  with  a  foundation  of  sandstone.  In  the  southwestern  corner  of 
this  block  is  located  the  Tabernacle.  This  building  has  been  described 
by  a  writer  as  "  nothing  less  than  the  altar  of  a  new  people,  possessing 
a  new  law,  a  new  morality,  a  new  priesthood,  a  new  industry,  and  a 
new  God,-'  It  was  erected  by  the  Mormons  for  temporary  purposes, 
to  be  replaced  ha'eafter  by  the  great  Temple.  It  is  constructed  of 
sun  dried  brick,  of  elliptical  form,  and  its  interior  space  is  sufficiently 
great  to  drill  a  regiment  of  men.  Its  roof  is  dome-like  and  covered 
with  shingles.  Over  the  northern  and  southern  entrances  is  a  carved 
representation  of  the  sun  with  its  circles  of  golden  rays.  The  west 
side  or  end  of  the  building  is  reserved  for  the  higher  dignitaries  of 
the  church.  The  platform  is  about  six  feet  high  and  on  it  are  seats 
for  the  First  Presidency,  the  Twelve  Apostles,  and  the  President  of 
the  Stake  of  Zion.  The  female  portion  of  the  congregation  sit  on 
the  right  of  the  speaker,  the  male  on  the  left.  Service  is  held  each 
Sunday  and  occasionally  during  the  week,  and  twice  a  year  a  general 
conference  is  held  which  is  attended  by  thousands  of  the  saints 
from  all  parts  of  the  Territory.  Before  the  construction  of  the  rail- 
road it  consumed  months  for  some  to  go  and  return  from  this  semi- 
religious  devotion. 

About  the  center  of  the  square  fronting  Main  Street,  away 
from  all  other  buildings,  stands  the  unfinished  walls  of  the  Mormon 
Temple,  intended  when  completed  to  be  the  vast  cathedral  of  that 
rehgious  sect.  It  is  in  conception  a  magnificent  building,  built  to 
endure  with  the  ages.  Its  foundations  are  sixteen  feet  deep,  com- 
posed of  hard  gray  granite.  The  plan  of  this  future  temple  contem- 
plated the  erection  of  a  building  186|^  feet  in  length  and  99  feet  in 
width,  with  three  towers  at  each  end.  the  central  200  feet  high  and 
the  side  towers  190  feet;  each  tower  to  terminate  in  octagon  turrets 
and  pinnacles. 

In  the  extreme  northwestern  angle  of  the  block  is  built  the 
Endowment  House.     This  is  likewise  constructed  of  adohe  with  a  closed 


2t)d  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

roof.  There  are  but  four  windows,  one  of  which  is  blocked  up.  The 
central  or  higher  portions  stand  between  two  wings,  smaDer  edifices  of 
the  same  form.  Here  the  convert  to  the  Mormon  religion  is  received 
into  the  bosom  of  the  church  with  peculiar  and  mysterious  forms  and 
ceremonies  which  are  presumed  to  be  known  only  to  the  initiated,  and 
never  revealed,  but  which  will  form  the  subject  of  another  chapter  of 
this  work.  The  new  assembly  rooms,  situated  in  this  block  has  been 
erected  in  later  years. 

Salt  Lake  City  lies  midway  between  Utah  and  Salt  Lake,  stretch- 
ing along  the  right  bank  of  the  Jordan,  which  forms  its  western 
border,  with  a  parallel  width  of  two  miles.  It  is  fifteen  miles  distant 
from  the  Wahsatch,  although  from  the  clear  atfhosphere  it  seems 
scarcely  five,  and  about  ten  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  river.  Its 
nearest  point  to  Great  Salt  Lake  is  nine  miles.  It  rests  upon  one  of  the 
lowest  terraces  of  the  mountain  range  and  slopes  from  north  to  south 
along  the  lines  of  its  waterways,  and  from  east  to  west,  which  is  its 
natural  drainage  to  the  river.  In  plan  it  is  rectangular,  its  streets 
intersecting  each  other  at  right  angles — all  beginning  at  Temple  Block, 
the  sacred  jwint  of  its  civilization.  It  much  resembles  the  plan  of  Wash- 
ington City,  or  the  city  of  LouisviUe,  d  i  vested  entirely  of  the  avenues  that 
cut  in  acute  and  oblique  angles  the  streets  and  squares  of  the  Federal 
capital.  Its  streets  and  thoroughfares  are  in  the  main  over  one  hundred 
feet  wide  and  are  lined  with  locust  and  other  varieties  of  shade  trees. 
These  are  refreshed  by  two  streams  of  water  that  flow  from  the  north- 
ern hillsides,  and  by  a  perfect  system  of  irrigation  are  made  to  water 
the  entire  expanse.  Each  square  contains  ten  acres  and  is  subdivided 
into  lots  of  1^  acres  each.  Of  course,  in  later  years,  with  modern 
appliances  laid  at  their  doors  by  the  railroad,  there  has  been  a  great 
advance  in  the  architectural  beauty  and  symmetry  of  these  houses. 
But  the  period  I  am  called  upon  to  describe  was  twenty  years  ago  and 
their  houses  were  for  the  most  part  of  ruder  construction.  They  were 
nearly  all  built  upon  the  same  model,  like  that  of  a  barn  with  wings, 
usually  facing,  but  frequently  built  sideways  to  the  street.  The 
material  in  all  was  that  of  adobe^  as  timber  was  very  scarce  and  could 
only  be  gathered  at  great  labor  and  expense,  and  was  therefore  confined 
to  the  finishing  or  inside  work.  There  was  a  better  class  of  houses, 
owned  and  occupied  by  the  more  prosperous  of  the  people,  usually  of 
two  stories  with  flat  roofs  and  shady  verandahs,  and  painted  in  lively 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S. 


269 


colors.  They  were,  however,  not  numerous,  at  that  time,  the  most  of 
the  buildings  being  of  one  story,  only  to  be  distinguished  from  barns 
by  windows  and  a  multitude  of  doors. 

One  of  the  better  classed  houses  was  located  on  Main  Street,  nearly 
opposite  Eldridge  Building,  which  contained  the  United  States  post- 
office.  This  house  came  nearer  the  classification  of  a  pretty  villa.  Its 
adobe  walls  were  covered  with  yellow  stucco  and  its  verandahs  were 


TEMPLE   AND   TABERNACLE,   SALT  LAKE  CITY. 

models  of  beauty  and  comfort.  It  was  likewise  in  the  center  of  a  large 
lot  containing  a  fine  orchard  in  the  rear  and  a  most  beautiful  garden 
of  flowers  in  the  front,  carefully  cultivated  and  kept  with  infinite  neat- 
ness and  blooming  with  nasturtium,  geranium,  rose  and  pink.  Its 
walls  and  palings  were  adorned  with  trailing  vines  and  a  sweet-scented 
honey-suckle,  twining  about  the  pillars  and  railings  of  the  porches, 
shed  an  aroma  for  a  considerable  distance  around. 


270  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

To  this  bright  spot  the  Prophet  was  often  seen  to  wend  his 
way.  In  fact  here  he  silent  a  goodly  portion  of  his  time.  In  this 
lover's  retreat  dwelt  a  beautiful  woman,  with  whose  golden  locks  the 
soft  summer  winds  had  toyed  for  twenty -nine  years.  Here,  surrounded 
by  all  that  was  beautiful  and  joyful,  with  rare  and  costly  furniture 
imported  at  great  labor  and  expense,  with  all  that  wealth  and  fortune's 
fairest  smiles  could  bestow,  dwelt  Amelia,  the  last  and  favorite  wife  of 
Brigham  Young.  Her  young  life  was  not  untinged  bj"  romance. 
Entering  the  valley  with  her  parents  who  had  become  converts  to  the 
Mormon  faith,  her  youth  and  beauty  soon  won  for  her  many  admirers. 
One  among  them,  a  tall  athletic  man  with  a  bright  sunn^-  face  which 
the  cares  of  life  had  not  yet  touched  with  its  stony,  stormy  hand — the 
embodiment  of  good  nature,  good  morals,  a  steadfast  faith  in  his  own 
powers  and  an  untiring  industrv,  her  senior  but  a  few  short  years — soon 
won  his  way  to  her  heart's  affection  and  received  from  her  a  pledge  of 
womanly,  wifely  devotion.  But  the  same  girlish  charms  that  had  won 
the  youth  likewise  warmed  the  heart  of  the  Prophet,  and  on  the  very 
eve  of  her  intended  marriage  with  the  man  of  her  first  love  he  sought 
from  her  parents  her  hand  in  wedlock.  Such  an  honor  could  not  be 
rudely  declined^  accompanied,  as  it  was,  with  the  intimation  of  the  pro- 
motion of  the  father  in  church  relations  and  wordly  wealth.  The  poor 
girl  pleaded  in  vain.  The  iron  lule  of  the  church  bore  its  bitter  fruit. 
The  parent's  will  was  absolute;  only  escape  from  the  Territory  would 
avail,  and  with  every  mountain  pathwa}"^  guarded,  that  was  in  vain. 
Her  engagement  with  the  brawn  of  youth  was  broken,  and  withered 
age,  with  its  high  station  and  honors  claimed  her  fealty  at  the  altar. 
She  became  the  unwilling  bride  of  Brigham  Young.  And  thus  it  was 
he  paid  her  this  courtly  devotion,  and  laid  at  her  feet  his  wealth  with 
his  love.  Still  all  was  not  peace  within  this  abode  of  beauty.  I  heard 
a  whispered  something  concerning  the  last  cast-off  wife  from  whose 
apartment  had  been  taken  by  Brigham's  direction  a  mirror,  and  table 
of  costlv  wood,  with  which  to  adorn  the  fair  bride's  nuptial  chamber. 
These  costly  articles  of  furniture  were  shivered  with  an  ax,  wielded  by 
the  strong  arm  of  the  irat«  woman  whose  charms  had  failed  to  keep 
the  old  man  constant  to  the  vows  he  plighted  her  when  the  tender 
graces  of  her  youth  had  charmed  him  in  the  years  gone  by,  as  had 
lately  those  of  Amelia  Folsom. 

There  were  many  amusing  stories  told  of  the  wooings  of  the  old 
man  after  the. forced  marriage,  in  his  attempt  to  win  the  love  of  the 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  271 

woman  whose  companionship  he  had  won  by  force,  aided  by  his  lofty 
position. 

"When  I  was  there  the  great  thoroughfare  of  the  city  was  Main 
Street,  running  along  the  Temple  front  southward  to  the  southern 
limits  of  the  city.  At  first  it  contained  the  houses  of  the  principal 
Mormon  dignitaries,  but  it  gradually  changed  to  a  busy  street,  upon 
which  all  the  stores  of  the  Gentiles  were  located,  and  their  banking 
houses,  and  the  fine  building  erected  by  "Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  for  the 
transaction  of  their  large  express  and  banking  business.  Mormon 
merchants,  likewise,  congregated  there,  and  the  street  soon  lost 
its  vernal  appearance.  It  was  recognized  as  the  center  of  the  trade 
and  commerce  of  Salt  Lake  City,  and  the  fragrant  gardens  that 
erstwhile  bloomed  so  beautiful  gave  way  to  shop-fronts,  store-goods 
and  a  stirring  atmosphere.  To-day  it  is,  with  its  fine  business  blocks, 
its  hotels  and  magnificent  banking  houses,  the  peer  of  any  business 
street  in  our  larger  American  cities.  But  I  am  talking  of  the  past 
with  its  vanished  years,  not  of  the  present. 

Crossing  Main  Street,  or  running  parallel  with  it,  are  many  others 
of  importance,  on  which  are  located  buildings  of  note.  On  First 
South  Street  was  located  the  theater  and  city  hall.  John  T.  Caine 
was  the  proprietor  of  the  theater  at  the  time  of  my  sojourn  in  Salt 
Lake.  He  is  now  the  delegate  in  Congress  from  that  Territory,  and 
writes  "  Honorable  "  before  his  name,  and  I  know  no  one  in  that  body 
more  justly  deserving  of  the  prefix. 

As  this  city  was  a  resting  place  midway  on  the  continent  for  the 
traveler  and  tounst,  so,  likewise,  all  the  artists  of  note  dwelt  tempo- 
rarily in  their  midst.  I  have  witnessed,  upon  the  boards  of  this 
theater,  as  fair  productions  of  the  histrionic  art  as  I  have  beheld  in  the 
more  cultivated  portions  of  the  country.  I  saw  poor  John 
McCullough,  then  entering  upon  his  brilliant  career,  in  the  Gladiator, 
Metamora  and  the  Melancholy  Dane.  Wallack  and  Davenport  in 
Othello  and  lago  with  Mrs.  Davenport  as  "Desdemona,"  and  in 
others  of  their  favorite  roles.  Miss  Innis  in  her  wonderful  creation  of 
Elizabeth,  and  the  noted  Couldock  in  Chimney  Corner  and  as  Luke 
Fielding  in  the  Willow  Copse,  and,  afterward,  I  spent  a  whole  night 
listening  to  his  recitations,  with  a  jolly  party  partaking  of  a  jack 
rabbit,  cooked  by  his  own  hand  according  to  the  English  style,  which 
he  declared  to  be  as  fine  as  the  famous  English  hare. 


272  SCHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUXTAIXS. 

I  heard  the  magnificent  Parepa  and  her  whole  corapfiny  each 
night  for  a  week,  in  their  grand  volume  of  song  and  opera,  and  nearly 
all  of  the  famous  actors  and  actresses,  whose  names  were  ringing  with 
fame  thronghont  the  land  twenty  years  ago.  The  stock  company  of 
this  theater  was  as  good  generally  as  those  of  the  Eastern  cities  or  on 
the  Pacific  coast.  I  have  spent  many  very  pleasant  hours  within  the 
portals  of  this  Mountain  Playhouse,  which  I  now  recall  with  fond 
remembrances  by  the  side  of  one  who  was  mj^  companion  across  the 
sterile  deserts  of  the  continent,  and  who  has  been  the  companion  of 
my  life,  making  its  hours  golden  with  the  light  of  her  love  and  the 
joys  of  her  sunny  nature. 

And  then,  on  Second  South  Street,  but  farther  to  the  west,  stood 
the  court  house,  in  which  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  of  the 
Territory  held  its  sittings.  Here  old,  silver-haired  John  Titus  presided 
as  chief  justice,  with  Roman  firmness  and  with  an  acumen  bom  of  a 
clear,  well-trained  legal  mind,  and  with  all  the  grace  and  dignity  of  his 
mature  age.  Xeither  flattery  nor  fawning  swerved  him  a  hairs 
breadth  from  the  even  line  of  his  duty.  And  similar  in  character  was 
his  associate  justice,  Thomas  J.  Drake.  When  flattery  failed,  some 
Mormon  leaders  sought  to  alarm  them,  and  thus  prevent  the  rigid 
enforcement  of  the  law  against  ]X)lygamy,  b\"  transmitting  them 
shrouds  and  coffins,  and  the  portraits  of  themselves  dangling  from 
telegraph  poles.  Such  was  the  state  of  affairs  that,  as  late  as  AprlL 
1S66,  Associate  Justice  H.  B.  McCurdy  called  by  telegraph  to  Gen. 
P.  E.  Conner,  commanding  United  States  iroops  in  Utah,  but  then  on 
a  visit  to  Xew  York  City,  to  go  to  the  Secretary  of  War  and  inform 
him  that  he  (Judge  McCurdy)  had  been  publicly  denounced  and 
threatened  by  the  Mormons  for  uniting  in  marriage  one  Brassfield,  a 
Gentile  (afterward  murdered  by  the  Mormons),  to  a  Mormon  woman, 
and  that  his  life  and  property  would  be  unsafe  if  the  United  States 
troops  were  withdrawn  from  the  Territory,  as  was  contemplated  by 
the  Secretary  of  War  at  that  time,  but  not  carried  into  eflFect  for  the 
above  cause. 


CHAPTEE  XYIII. 

UTAH  JUDGES  — INTER  VIS  V  BETWEEN  BRIGHAM  YOUNG  AND  JUDGE  TITUS - 
THE  MORMON  OFFICIALS  AND  JUDGE  DRAKE  — UNITED  STATES  JUDGES  OP 
UTAH  AND  OTHER  OFFICIALS  —  THE  M  JRRISITES  —  MURDER  OF  THEIR 
PROPHET  BY  BRIGHAM'S  DIRECTION  — OTHER  MURDERS  — GREAT  EXCITE^ 
MENT  AMONG  THE  PEOPLE  — SYSTEM  OF  TRADE  AMONG  THE  MORMONS^ 
ZION'S  CO-OPERATIVE  MERCANTILE  INSTITJTION  — BRIGHAM'S  AUTOCRACY. 

After  Judge  Titus  arrived  in  the  Territory  and  assumed  his  duties 
upon  the  bench,  lie  began  to  investigate  in  a  quiet  manner  the  facts 
connected  with  the  brutal  murder  and  robbery  of  128  peaceful  emi- 
grants from  Arkansas,  who  were  journeying  through  Utah  on  their 
way  to  Los  Angeles,  California,  known  to  the  country  as  the  '''Mount- 
ain Meadow  Massacre,"  a  complete  history  of  which,  together  with 
the  trial  and  execution  of  Bishop  John  D.  Lee,  one  of  the  principal 
actors  in  the  crime,  and  his  confession  nearly  thirty  years  after  the 
commission  of  the  horrible  act,  is  related  in  a  subsequent  chapter  of 
this  work. 

Conversing  with  the  Judge  one  day  upon  this  subject,  he  stated  to 
me  that  he  entered  upon  the  investigation  with  a  view  of  establishing 
the  innocence  of  the  Mormon  people  and  their  leaders.  That  he  could 
not  believe  a  civilized  people  to  be  guilty  of  such  a  heinous  offense  as 
the  murder  of  128  defenseless  men,  women  and  children  who  had  sur- 
rendered to  them  their  arms  and  property,  and  unto  whom  they  had 
promised  the  security  of  their  lives  and  safe  guidance  to  the  nearest 
settlement. 

He  wished,  bv  investigation,  to  establish  their  innocence  of  any 
participation  in  such  an  act  of  cruel  bloodshed,  and  in  return  for  the 
warm  reception  which  had  been  given  him  on  his  arrival,  and  many 
acts  of  kindness  since  extended,  and  to  publish,  under  his  own  signa- 
ture, as  the  highest  law  officer  of  the  Territory,  a  substantial  denial  of 
the  allegation,  and  thus  wipe  out  the  stain  which  blotted  their 
escutcheon. 

But,  much  to  his  sorrow,  the  further  he  proceeded  with  the  investi- 
gation the  greater  the  testimony  he  gathered  relating  to  the  horrible 

27  i  lii. 


274  ECHOES   FUOil   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

act;  the  more  full\'  he  became  convinced  that  his  pre-conceived  opinions 
were  wrong,  and  that  the  Mormon  leaders  were  guilty  of  complicity  in 
the  revolting  crime.  From  testimon}'^  obtained  from  a  secret  source 
he  became  convinced  that  the  Prophet  himself  was  an  accessory,  if  not 
the  projector  of  the  crime.  Having  arrived  at  this  conclusion,  he  did 
not  hesitate  to  state  his  convictions  to  those  who  talked  with  him  on 
this  subject.  Under  the  machinery  of  the  courts,  only  Territorial  at 
that  period,  it  was  impossible  to  try  and  convict  these  parties.  Never- 
theless the  stern  old  Judge  declared  tliat  had  he  the  power  he  would 
bring  them  before  his  court  and  convict  them  of  the  offense,  if  possible. 
Of  course  it  was  not  long  before  this  declaration  on  the  part  of  the 
Judge  reached  the  Prophet's  ears,  and  becoming  quite  indignant  at 
the  charge,  all  intercourse  ceased  at  once  between  the  head  of  the 
church  and  the  chief  justice. 

Judge  Titus  was  an  early  riser,  and  it  was  his  custom  to  take  long 
morning  walks  among  the  foothills  of  the  mountains  and. other  points 
of  interest  in  the  neighborhood.  One  of  the  most  beautiful  walks  of 
the  surrounding  country  was  through  City  Creek  Caiion.  The  lofty 
hillside  rose  at  either  hand  to  a,  great  height,  covered  with  green  ver- 
dure upon  which  cattle  fed,  clinging  like  goats  to  the  loft}?^  incline. 
Below  was  the  purling  stream  of  pure  cold  water  fed  from  the  Alpine 
watersheds  of  melted  snow  and  ice.  About  a  mile  from  the  entrance 
on  the  bench  was  a  picturesque  mill,  moved  by  the  gathered  waters, 
in  which  was  ground  a  part  of  the  grist  used  b\^  the  people.  Little 
gardens  here  and  there  dotted  the  narrow  landscape,  and  at  intervals  a 
field  of  waving  grain  caught  the  eye.  Overhead  was  the  clear  blue 
ether,  the  purple  haze,  the  rolling  waves  of  cloud  and  sunlight  reflected 
on  the  sparkling  waters  below  and  in  moving  shadows  upon  the  mount- 
ain sides.  Xo  more  beautiful  spot  was  to  be  found  anywhere,  but  to 
reach  it  and  follow  the  footpath  leading  to  the  mill  you  were  compelled 
to  open  one  of  the  gates  of  Brigham  Young's  inclosures  and  to  pass 
throujrh  a  garden  attached  to  one  of  his  structures.  There  was  another 
road  leading  to  the  mill,  up  the  foothill  leading  to  Ensign  Peak,  past 
the  old  powder  mill  on  the  brow  of  the  first  hill,  and  thence  by  a  path, 
way  dug  out  of  the  side  of  the  soil  at  an  oblique  angle  to  the  base. 
But  going  this  way  you  lost  the  beauty  of  the  lower  scenery,  the  fra- 
grance of  the  flowers  and  the  scent  of  the  new-mown  hay  that  enlivened 
you  at  every  point. 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  EOCKT  MOUNTAINS.  275 

Judge  Titus  concluded  early  one  morning  to  invoke  the  mysteries 
of  this  valley  and  himself  become  acquainted  with  its  beauties  and 
charms.  Accordingly  he  opened  the  gate  for  the  first  time,  passed 
through  the  garden,  wandered  leisurely  along  the  side  of  the  stream, 
stopping  now  and  then  to  examine  some  point  of  interest,  some  for- 
mation of  rock  or  soil  (the  Judge  Avas  a  great  student  of  nature), 
gazing  upon  the  hillside  cattle,  and  inhaling  the  fragrance  of  the 
wild  flowers  that  decked  the  sides  of  the  stream. 

Thus  he  proceeded  to  the  mill  and  returned  as  leisurely  as  he  went. 
From  a  window  of  his  mansion  Brigham  Young  had  beheld  the  tall 
form  of  the  Judge  strolling  thus  through  his  grounds,  and  on  his  return 
intercepted  him  near  the  gate  with  the  remark,  "I  believe  this  is 
Judge  Titus."  "Yes,  sir , "  promptly  responded  the  Judge,  "and  I 
believe  I  have  the  honor  of  addressing  Governor  Young"  (he  ahvays 
called  him  Governor,  having  been  the  first  governor  of  the  Territory 
appointed  by  the  United  States.)  "Yes,  sir;  you  have"  responded 
Brigham,  "and  I  have  a  question  to  ask  you.  I  have  heard  that  you 
charge  me  with  being  criminally  connected  with  the  slaughter  of  the 
Missouri  emigrants  at  Mountain  Meadow.  I  wish  to  know,  sir,  whether 
or  not  you  have  made  such  a  charge  against  my  character  as  a  man 
and  my  morality  as  a  Christian  leader  of  this  people  ? "  Pie  paused  for 
a  reply.  He  did  not  believe  that  Judge  Titus  would  dare  to  repeat  the 
assertions  in  his  presence,  and  he  could  thenceforth  brand  the  state- 
ment as  a  falsehood,  on  no  less  an  authority  than  the  Judge  himself, 
so  he  looked  fiercely  in  the  face  of  the  old  man  while  he  waited  for  a 
reply  to  this  question.  He  did  not  wait  long.  Drawing  himself  to  his 
full  height,  his  tall  form  as  straight  as  an  Indian's,  his  long  gray  locks 
wet  with  morning  dew,  he  returned  the  look  that  Brigham  gave  him, 
and  thus  made  reply :  "Yes,  Governor  Young,  I  did  make  that  state- 
ment, and  that  which  is  still  more  to  the  point,  I  have  the  evidence  to 
prove  it,  and  if  the  system  prevaling  in  the  Territory  in  the  summoning 
of  jurors  to  try  such  causes,  admitted  of  a  fair  and  impartial  trial,  I 
would  bring  you  before  my  court  and  convict  you  and  other  high 
leaders  of  your  church  of  that  cruel  and  bloody  offense  against 
humanity  and  the  law  of  your  country." 

Brigham  Young  was  perfectly  dumbfounded  at  this  bold  avowal 
of  the  charge  by  the  Judge,  and  scarcely  knew  what  to  reply.  At  last, 
summoning  his  ideas,  he  pronounced  the    charge  and  the   statement 


276  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

of  the  Judge  false,  and  ordered  him  never  to  again  invade  his  premises, 
at  the  peril  of  an  ejectment  b\^  force.  Tkp  Judge  continued  his 
morning  walks  but  not  in  that  direction. 

His  associate,  Judge  Drake,  of  Michigan,  although  the  very  oppo- 
site in  form  and  stature,  was  his  counterpart  in  legi:l  attainments  and 
force  of  character.  He  was  a  bitter  opponent  of  the  system  of  polyg- 
amy, and  an  unrelenting  foe  to  the  avowed  principles  of  those  high 
in  authority  in  the  Mormon  Church  who  sought,  by  the  open  violation 
of  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  to  encourage  the  act  among  their 
lowlier  followers.  His  course  on  the  l^ench  was  as  firm  as  the  mount- 
ain walls.  In  the  discharge  of  his  judicial  duties  he  was  fearless  and 
unflinching.  "Whenever  the  opportunity  pi-esented,  he  never  failed  to 
enforce  the  law  in  as  vigorous  a  manner  as  the  law  itself  permitted. 
I  do  not  think  he  ever  had  a  sense  of  fear  or  gave  a  thought  to  per- 
sonal danger.  Flattery  could  not  swerve  him,  and  presents  of  shrouds 
and  coffins  and  the  pictures  of  men  dangling  from  poles  and  lamp  posts, 
could  not  deter  him  from  a  strict  and  impartial  discharge  of  his  sworn 
duties  and  obligations  of  his  high  office.  Of  course,  it  was  not  lono: 
before  he  encountered  the  hatred  of  the  Mormon  officials.  And  this 
was  more  apparent  from  the  fact  that  upon  bis  entrance  into  the  Terri- 
tory, he  was  siezed  ujwn  by  these  same  officials  who  sought  by  all 
pleasant  means  to  ingratiate  themselves  into  his  good  will  and  affec- 
tion. He  was  a  very  small  man,  but  like  King  Pepin  of  old.  he 
possessed  a  lion's  heart. 

One  day  a  deputation  of  Mormon  officials  waited  upon  him  by 
direction  of  President  Brigham  Young,  presenting  a  request  that,  inas- 
much as  he  had  invoked  the  ill  will  of  the  Mormon  people  by  his 
rigorous  judicial  course,  it  would  be  for  the  common  good  that  he 
should  resign  his  seat  on  the  bench  and  betake  himself  beyond  the 
limits  of  the  Territorv^.  This  deputation  of  Mormon  elders  was  led  by 
John  Taylor,  at  that  time  next  in  authority  to  Brigham  Young,  who 
after  the  death  of  the  latter  became  the  president  of  the  Mormon 
church,  assuming  the  robes  of  office  that  fell  from  Brigham  Young. 

The  little  Judge  listened  gravely  to  what  the  leader  had  to  say, 
and  when  he  had  concluded,  turned  upon  him  his  flashing  eyes,  and  in 
sharp  tones  of  indignation  remarked:  "How  dare  j^ou,  John  Taylor, 
an  unnaturalized  citizen  of  this  countr\^,  invade  the  privacy  of  my 
house  and  address  such  remarks  to  me,  a  United  States  judge  of  this 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  277 

Territory?  Go  you  back  to  your  master,  Brigham  Young,  and  tell  hina 
for  me  that  if  lie  ever  dares  again  to  send  such  a  message  to  me  while  I 
j^reside  as  an  associate  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  this  Territory,  I 
will  arrest  and  imprison  his  messengers,  and  him  likewise,  for  contempt 
of  court,  if  I  be  compelled  to  invoke  the  aid  of  the  neighboring  military 
forces  of  the  United  States  to  enforce  the  order.  And  now,  John 
Taylor,  you  and  your  companions  get  out  of  my  house  instantly!" 
They  departed,  and  that  was  the  last  message  of  similar  character 
■delivered  to  Judge  Drake  w^hile  he  presided  as  associate  justice  of  the 
Territorial  Supreme  Court. 

But  it  should  be  said  in  justice  to  both  of  these  judges,  that  their 
stern  official  course  was  never  dictated  by  any  ill-feeling  toward  the 
Mormon  people.  I  have  often  heard  them  express  themselves  as 
friendly  to  the  people  even  as  a  sect.  Their  antagonism  was  the 
result  of  the  open  and  repeated  violations  of  the  law  against  polygamy. 
I  have  heard  them  say  that  if  it  would  result  in  the  overthrow  of  the 
act  of  polygamy  for  all  future  time,  they  would  favor  the  act  of 
Congress  legalizing  the  offspring  then  existing.  They  held  that  such 
an  act  would  be  justifiable  to  prevent  wrong  to  the  innocent  offspring, 
and  the  Territory  would  thereby  contain  a  population  of  legal  citizens 
and  not  one  of  bastards.  They  praised  the  skill  and  industry  of  the 
Mormon  people,  and  believed  that,  rid  of  the  curse  of  polygamy,  a  high 
destiny  awaited  this  remarkable  growth  of  the  mountains,  which  had 
made  the  barren  earth  to  bloom  in  beauty.  They  were  not  enemies, 
but  true  friends  of  the  people,  as  time  and  its  evolutions  in  society 
would  fully  demonstrate. 

Off  the  bench  no  more  genial  gentlemen  could  be  found  in  the 
Territory.  Judge  Titus  Avas  fond  of  company  and  possessed  great 
conversational  powers.  Judge  Drake  was  exceedingly  fond  of  a  four- 
handed  game  of  euchre,  and  many  are  the  stories  told  of  his  excessive 
fondness  for  this  pastime.  He  never  indulged  in  it  for  gain,  however, 
although  a  most  expert  player.  He  never  seemed  to  tire  of  the  game. 
He  w^ould  begin  early  in  the  evening  and  continue  until  long  past  mid- 
night, if  the  other  players  would  consent.  Once  we  sought  to  play  a 
httle  "game"  on  him.  We  made  up  a  party  one  evening,  for  the 
Judge's  benefit,  which  embraced  two  ladies,  both  accomplished  players. 
We  agreed,  before  beginning,  to  play  on  and  on,  and  continue  the 
game  unceasingly  until  the  Judge  himself  should  give  the  order  to 


278  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

retire.  We  wished  to  determine  his  capacity  for  endurance  and  see 
how  far  into  the  night,  or  rather  the  morn;ng,  he  would  go  before 
obtaining  complete  satisfaction.  And  so  we  played  on,  hour  after  hour. 
Midnight  came,  the  early  hours  of  the  next  day  passed — one,  two, three 
o'clock,  and  still  the  Judge  played  on  with  as  much  earnestness  and 
skill  as  in  the  beginning  of  the  evening.  Finally,  when  nearly  four^ 
and  almost  ready  for  the  first  faint  flashes  of  the  morning  sunlight, 
the  Judge  noticed  that  there  was  no  response  from  his  lady  partner, 
and,  looking  up  from  the  cards  in  his  hand,  he  for  the  first  time  noticed 
that  both  ladies  were  asleep.  Taking  out  his  watch  and  finding  that  it 
was  nearly  4  o'clock,  he  laid  down  his  hand  with  the  exclamation 
"  "Well,  as  I  have  put  these  ladies  to  bed,  I  guess  I  too,  wiQ  now  retire !  " 
"We  now  took  a  parting  drop  of  "  Yalley  Tan  "  and  bade  him  good 
morning,  but  we  never  told  him  of  "  our  little  game  "  and  how  he  had 
come  forth  the  victor,  although  more  than  sixty  years  old,  considerably 
more  than  double  the  years  of  either  of  them  who  sat  with  him  in  the 
"  little  game  of  bluflf." 

Charles  Durkee,  of  "Wisconsin,  was  governor  of  the  Territory, 
and  Edwin  Higgins,  of  Michigan,  its  Secretary.  The  latter  has  since 
held  a  number  of  offices  in  the  State  of  Florida,  including  that  of  col- 
lector of  the  port  of  Jacksonville.  During  our  sojourn  in  the  valley 
we  were  thrown  much  together,  and  a  warm  friendship  grew  up  be- 
tween us. 

Governor  Durkee  was  an  old  man,  and  the  office  had  been  tendered 
him  by  President  Johnson  as  the  roimding  off  of  a  long  and  somewhat 
eventful  political  career.  He  was  appointed  soon  after  the  death  of 
Governor  Doty  of  the  same  State.  He  had  served  his  adopted  State 
in  both  Houses  of  the  National  Legislature,  having  been  a  senator,  I 
think,  for  two  terms.  He  had  traveled  much  and  was  very  entertain- 
ing in  his  reminiscences.  He  had  been  presented  to  the  Emperor  and  the 
Empress  of  the  French,  and  it  is  said,  that,  being  quite  a  handsome  man, 
the  Empress  paid  him  marked  attention.  I  asked  him  once  if  this  was 
true,  and  he  slowly  ejaculated  "  Tes."  I  suspect  his  mind  was  wan- 
dering over  green  fields  and  pastures  of  the  "  long  ago."  He  loved  to 
dwell  upon  his  associations  with  Clay,  Calhoun  and  "Webster,  and,  while 
an  original  abolitionist  and  their  first  candidate  for  the  presidency, 
spoke  admiringly  of  the  skill  of  Calhoun  as  a  logician,  and  praised  his 
exalted  talents  and  character.  He  died  shortly  after  the  expiration 
of  his  term  as  governor. 


ECHOES   FROM   TKB    ROCKY   MOUXTAINS.  279 

Charles  11.  Hempstead  was  United  States  district  attorney,  and 
a  fine  gentleman  and  officer,  who  in  after  years  acquired  fame  and 
riches,  but  did  not  long  survive  to  enjoy  them. 

The  United  States  marshal  was  J.  R.  Hosmer,  who  became 
entangled  in  some  controversy  with  the  Government  on  account  of  the 
funds  entrusted  to  his  care.  I  always  heard  him  spoken  of,  however, 
as  a  good  officer,  so  far  as  the  business  of  the  courts  was  concerned. 

Gen.  A.  L.  Chetlain  was  the  assessor  of  Internal  revenue 
(formerly  a  major-general  of  volunteers).  Brigham  Young  was  said  to 
hold  him  in  high  esteem,  and  frequently  invited  him  to  accompany  him 
on  his  travels  through  the  Territory.  But  this  may  have  been  on 
account  of  the  office  he  held.  I  always  found  him  a  genial  gentleman 
and  pleasant  companion.  To  be  sure  it  used  to  vex  him  mightily  to 
lose  the  odd  game  of  euchre,  but  then  he  only  got  mad  with  the  cards 
and  his  luck  and  Avas  ever  ready  to  try  it  over  again.  He  is  now  a 
resident  of  Chicago,  Illinois,  and  has  been  president  of  a  !N'ational 
bank.  He  is  now  living  in  easy  circumstances,  and  has  retired  from 
active  business.  President  Grant  appointed  him  United  States  Consul 
to  Brussels  during  his  first  administration.  J.  Eussell  Jones,  of  Chicago, 
Wijs  tiie  United  States  minister  at  the  same  time,  and  made  his 
"Eepublican  Court"  famous  for  its  grand  entertainments. 

R.  T.  Burton,  a  Mormon,  was  the  collector  of  Internal  revenue. 
He  was  the  officer  in  command  who  murdered  the  "  False  Prophet " 
Morris,  and  some  of  his  followers  called  "  Morrisites,"  who  had  taken 
refuge  at  a  point  near  the  "Weber  River,  where  the  Pacific  Railroad  now 
issues  from  the  caiion,  and  before  it  detours  toward  the  line  of  the 
lake. 

This  act  of  bloodshed  produced  an  excitement  similar  to  that  of 
the  "  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre,"  when  the  commission  of  that  ter- 
rible crime  became  known,  although  the  number  of  victims  was  small 
compared  to  that  sanguinary  deed.  Still  it  was  committed  under  the 
forms  of  law  and  the  perpetrators  were  never  punished. 

Joseph  Morris  was  a  simple  uneducated  Welshman,  who  for  a  con- 
siderable period  had  been  the  recipient  of  "  revelations "  reflecting 
upon  the  course  of  Brigham  Young.  These  revelations  were  multifold, 
and  soon  disciples  began  to  appear.  A  creed  was  adopted  and  conse- 
cration of  property  began.  Morris  was  steward  over  all.  lie  was 
received  on  the  Weber  with  open  arms  by  the  Bishop  of  Kingston  Fort, 


280 


LCHOLS    r    Oil    THE    KOCKT    MOUNTAIXS. 


who  declared  that  "  the  neu'  prophet  had  been  raised  up  by  the  Lord 
to  deliver  Isreal  from  boandage,"  Here  he  held  his  court,  and  was 
joined  bv  numerous  believers  from  all  parts  oF  the  Territory.  After 
awhile  some  of  these  believers  apostatized,  and  in  seeking  a  redivision 
of  property  by  seizing  some  grain  belonging  to  the  Morrisites  on  its 
way  to  the  mill,  were  arrested  by  the  Morrisites'  guard  and  cast  into 
prison.  A  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  immediatel}"  issued  for  their 
release  by  Chief  Justice  Kinney  and  twice  afterward,  but  no  attention 
was  paid  thereto  by  this  band.     Whereupon  a  posse  of  Mormon  militia, 


r 


to^^ 


'^ 


s- 


^^^ 


;-,V.^^^^i^^^K 


MURDER  OF  MORRIS.    DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  MORRISITES. 

commanded  b}'^  R.  T.  Burton,  deputy  United  States  marshal,  proceeded 
against  them,  and  with  cannon  and  musketry  fired  upon  them  from  an 
eminence,  while  inprdyermeeting,kilUngraany  of  their  number.  This 
effusion  of  blood  could  have  been  avoided  by  Burton  had  he  possessed 
true  courage.  He  could  have  served  the  summons  and  released  his 
prisoners  by  an  unarmed  posse.  This,  however,  was  not  the  means 
contemplated.  The  death  of  the  false  prophet  and  his  counselors  was 
necessary  to  the  Mormon  church  and  had  been  decreed. 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  281 

A  f  ter  three  days'  siege  of  the  fort  the  Morrisites  surrendered  together 
with  all  their  arms  and  property.  Burton,  much  excited,  rode  up  to 
Morris,  and  having  commanded  him  to  surrender  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  shot  him  dead,  with  the  remark,  "What  do  you  think  of  your 
Prophet,  now  ? "  He  then  turned  suddenly  and  shot  John  Banks,  one 
of  the  leaders,  standing  five  paces  distant.  He  then  shot  dead  two 
women  for  calling  him  "  a  bloodthirsty  wretch  " —  one  a  Mrs.  Bowman, 
the  other  a  Danish  woman.  This  testimony  was  gathered  from  an 
affidavit  made  by  one  of  them  named  Alexander  Daw,  on  the  18th  of 
April,  1833,  before  Cha;les  B.  VYaite,  associate  justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  ntah  Territory. 

And  this  "bloodthirsty  wretch,"  who,  under  the  forms  of  law, 
murdered  in  cold  blood  these  defenseless  people,  was  honored  and 
promoted  by  his  own  people,  and  by  the  United  States  Government 
who  appointed  him  United  States  collector  of  Internal  revenue. 
They  were  not  even  murdered  under  the  forms  of  law,  but  in  violation 
of  them,  inasmuch  as  the  "  False  Prophet"  and  his  counselor.  Banks, 
and  the  two  women,  one  with  a  babe  in  her  arms,  Avere  all  murdered 
after  their  surrender.  This  atrocious  deed  was  committed  either  at  the 
bidding  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  or  in  the  hope  of  the  "  monster  "  that 
he  would  thus  please  Brigham  Young  by  ridding  him  of  a  hated  rival. 

It  will  be  recalled  as  a  fact  that  Justice  Kinney,  who  issued  the 
"writ,  was  afterward  baptized  into  the  Mormon  faith  in  the  river 
Jordan,  and  sent  bj' Brigham  Young  as  their  delegate  in  Congress  — 
so  much  for  the  rewards  of  even-handed  justice. 

A.  W.  Street,  a  pleasant  gentleman  and  faithful,  honest  officer, 
who  ever  sought  to  discharge  the  duties  of  his  responsible  office  in  an 
impartial  manner,  was  postmaster.  He  is  now  engaged  in  banking  at 
Council  Bluffs,  Iowa. 

F.  H.  Head  was  Indian  superintendent.  He  came  from  Racine, 
Wisconsin,  and  was  a  cousin  of  the  famous  lawyer  of  that  name  and 
place.  He  was  a  genial  sort  of  a  man,  had  a  very  pleasant  family  and 
was,  I  think,  the  only  one  of  all  the  Federal  officers  who  kept  house. 
I  remember  picking  strawberries,  with  a  pleasure  party  who  had 
callad  upon  his  family,  as  late  as  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening,  from 
his  famous  strawberry  patch.  We  picked  them  in  the  dark,  on  our 
knees,  Oh,  think  of  it,  ye  gods!  on  our  knees  !  They  were  as  large 
as  walnuts,  generally,  and  in  some  cases  one  of  them  v;ould  fill  a 


ii82  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

small-sized  tea-cup.  We  had  no  need  of  a  light  to  pick  such  mammoths 
from  a  vine.  And  besides  that  we  did  not  wat^t  a  light,  there  were  a 
good  many  pretty  girls  with  us,  and  we  were  young  and  engaging,  and 
nobody  could  detect  a  kiss  in  the  dark  in  exchange  for  the  biggest 
strawberry  we  could  find.  Mr.  Head  is  now  a  resident  of  one  of 
Chicago's  beautiful  suburbs  and  has  gathered  other  "  crops  of  plenty  " 
than  those  of  his  mountain  strawberries,  but  none  more  remembered 
by  his  friends  and  neighbors  with  such  kindly  thoughts  and  reminis- 
cences. 

At  the  close  of  President  Johnson's  administration  there  was  a 
general  change  of  Territorial  officers,  and  these  pleasant  associations 
were  broken  up.  Judge  Titus  was  afterward  appointed  chief  justice 
of  Arizona,  and  died  while  holding  that  office.  Judge  Drake  died  a 
few  years  since  at  his  home  in  Pontiac,  Michigan.  Judge  C.  W.  Haw- 
ley,  of  Chicago,  was  appointed  in  the  stead  of  Judge  McCurdy,  at 
the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office,  and  proved  a  faithful  and  efficient 
member  of  the  court,  and  has  left  behind  him  a  good  record.  He  is 
again  a  resident  of  Chicago,  passing  the  evening  of  his  days  in  peace 
and  happiness. 

Of  the  bar  of  that  early  period  I  recall  Thomas  Marshall,  of  the 
Kentucky  family  of  that  name,  and  his  partner,  K.  M.  Carter,  who 
died  a  few  years  afterward  at  Salt  Lake  City.  Mr.  Marshall  is  still  a 
resident  and  practicing  lawyer  of  that  city,  and  has  acquired  much 
wealth  in  his  profession.  Also  R.  H.  Baskin,  afterward  a  candidate 
and  contestant  for  a  seat  in  Congress,  and  Judge  Strickland,  who, 
upon  the  resignation  of  Judge  Drake,  was  promoted  to  the  be;ich. 
The}-^  were  all  prominent  Gentile  lawyers,  and  were  entrusted  with 
most  of  the  business  before  the  courts.  Of  the  Mormon  lawyers 
there  were  Judges  Snow  and  Hoge,  both  of  whom  had  been  elevated 
to  the  bench  at  different  periods,  and  Hosea  Stout.  I  am  not  informed 
as  to  their  subsequent  career. 

There  were  two  banking  houses  situated  on  Main  Street,  one 
ownetl  and  operated  by  Warren  Hussey  &  Co.,  the  other  by  Jose})h 
F.  Xounman  &  Co.,  who  afterward  sold  out  to  two  brothei-s  by  the 
name  of  Kiskadden.  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  also  did  a  banking  busi- 
ness, and  both  of  their  departments,  express  and  banking,  were  oper- 
ated by  their  superintendent,  Theodore  F.  Tracy,  who  came  to  Salt 
Lake  from  California,  having  been  in  their  employ  for  many  years  in 
that  State.     Of  course  they  were  all  Gentile  institutions. 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  283 

The  Mormons  did  not  do  much  in  the  way  of  banking.  In  the 
early  times,  and  even  to  the  advent  of  the  railroad  the  Mormon  peo- 
ple did  not  possess  much  money  as  a  medium  of  exchange.  Money  was 
exceedingly  scarce  from  a  multitude  of  causes,  chief  among  which  was 
the  lack  of  a  market  for  their  surplus  products.  It  is  true  that  at 
one  time  they  issued  a  certain  amount  of  paper  money,  but  the 
amount  was  comparatively  small  and  totally  inadequate  to  the 
wants  of  the  community.  This  state  of  the  money  market  induced  a 
curious  system  of  exchange.  The  great  overland  freight  trains 
brought  from  the  East  and  the  Pacific  coast  all  needed  goods. 
Everything  was  very  dear,  however,  arising  from  the  long  and  perilous 
transportation.  Months  were  consumed  in  crossing  the  plains  with 
heavily  loaded  ox  trains,  and  many  were  lost  on  the  way  by  storm 
and  flood  and  Indian  violence.  The  cost  therefore,  of  each  article  was 
proportionatelv  great  and  sometimes  scarce.  A  pound  of  sugar  when 
the  roads  were  blockaded  by  winter  would  cost  50  cents;  a  sack  of  flour 
of  100  pounds,  $50;  a  cord  of  wood  or  a  ton  of  coal,  $25;  a  gallon  of  coal 
oil  $3;  a  glass  chimney  for  a  lamp  50  cents;  and  a  pair  of  skates,  $12. 
As  there  was  but  little  money  among  the  Mormons,  the  medium  of 
exchange  was  their  products  of  industry.  If  a  Mormon  farmer  wished 
to  purchase  an  article  of  clothing  for  himself  or  a  member  of  his  family, 
he  AVould  offer  in  exchange  some  other  article  of  his  own  production 
That  might  not,  however,  be  desired,  but  he  might  need  a  cord  of  wood 
or  a  ton  of  coal.  The  farmer  did  not  possess  the  coal  or  wood,  but  he 
would  trade  a  pig  or  calves  for  lumber  or  sun-dried  brick,  and  the 
building  materials  he  would  trade  to  a  contractor  building  a  house  for 
a  merchant,  and  obtain  therefrom  an  order  on  the  merchant  for  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  goods,  and,  this  order  duly  accepted,  he  would  then 
exchange  for  the  desired  article  of  clothing.  Such  was  the  necessary 
procedure  in  the  system  of  exchange  among  the  people  of  the  valley 
in  the  earlier  times.  There  was,  however,  a  regular  rate  of  exchange 
established  and  strictly  adhered  to.  A  bushel  of  turnips  or  potatoes 
would  buy  a  ticket  to  the  Mormon  Theatre,  and  so  would  ten  water- 
melons or  a  dozen  cantelopes  when  in  season.  A  bushel  of  peaches 
would  purchase  several  pounds  of  sugar.  A  hundred  cabbages  would 
pay  for  the  quarterly  tuition  of  two  children.  Four  squashes  for  the 
daily  services  of  a  seamstress.  One  bushel  of  carrots  for  a  newspaper 
subscription  ;  beans  and  barley  for  shirts  and  drawers ;  buckwheat,  for 


284  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKT  MOUNTAINS. 

boots  and  goods  of  all  description  for  the  doctor.  Such  was  their 
system  of  exchange.  To  obtain  money  to  pay  their  Eastern  exchanges 
merchants  exchanged  their  products  for  cattle,  flour,  butter,  cheese, 
eggs,  dried  fruit,  which  at  great  pains  they  sold  for  cash  in  adjoining 
mining  Territories. 

Before  the  advent  of  the  railroad  it  cost  a  Gentile  a  large  sum  of 
money,  annuall}^,  to  live  in  Salt  Lake  City.  I  paid  for  board  and  lodg- 
ings for  myself  and  wife  over  $1,900  per  year.  Our  room,  about 
twelve  feet  square  (we  had  but  one),  contained  a  bedstead  of  very 
ordinarv  construction,  a  woolen  carpet  of  common  texture,  a  small 
pinewood  center  table,  a  wash-stand,  pitcher  and  basin  of  whiteware,  a 
small-sized  looking-glass  and  four  chairs.  There  was  neither  closet, 
clothes  press,  bureau,  rocking-chair  or  a  single  ornament  to  adorn  the 
room,  not  even  a  rack  or  a  shelf  for  books.  For  an  old  cherry-wood 
veneered  bureau  which  would  have  charmed  the  modem  taste  for  the 
antique,  I  paid  in  greenbacks  $110.  For  a  little  low-backed  rock- 
ing-chair without  ai^m8,for  my  wife,  rudely  constructed  of  whitewood, 
with  the  rockers  so  short  that  every  moment  or  two  you  would  tip  over, 
I  paid  $9;  and  for  two  shelves  four  feet  long  and  eight  inches  wide, 
strung  by  cords  to  the  wall,  for  some  of  my  wife's  choice  books,  I  paid 
$11.  Other  articles  in  proportion.  This  I  was  compelled  to  do  to 
make  the  room  comfortable.  My  landlady  could  not  afford  to  thus 
furnish  the  room  at  the  price  we  paid  her  monthly.  Had  she  been  able 
to  furnish  the  room  with  ordmary  taste,  our  board  and  lodging  would 
have  cost  us  over  $2,400  a  j'ear. 

There  were  but  three  prominent  hotels  at  that  period  in  Salt  Lake 
City.  The  Revere  House,  located  on  Second  South  Street,  operated  by 
a  Gentile  and  known  as  the  "  Gentile  House "  of  the  valle^^  The 
Salt  Lake  House,  although  a  dingy  two-storied  building,  with  but  few 
conveniences,  possessed  a  large  patronage.  It  was  situated  on  Main 
Street,  next  to  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  large  stone-front  building,  and 
was  owned  by  Brigham  Young  and  operated  by  one  of  his  numerous 
sons-in-law,  Ferrimore  Little.  It  contained  the  onl}'^  public  bar  in  the 
city,  save  one,  and  was  a  great  resort  for  the  miners  who  came  in  from 
their  dull  abodes  in  the  mountains  tos]>end  the  winter  and  their  money 
at  this  '•  city  of  refuge."  The  third  and  more  fashionable  place  was 
the  Tou'nsend  House,  situated  on  West  Temple  Street,  and  was  named 
after  its  owner  and  operator.     It  was  in  many  respects  a  llrst-class 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


285- 


hotel.  He  owed  much  of  his  prosperity  to  his  second  wife,  an  Enghsh 
lad}^  who  possessed  great  business  tact  and  ability.  I  well  remember 
her  lamentations  when  her  lord  and  master  took  unto  himself  a  third 
wife.  Brigham  finally  coveted  this  "  paying"  property,  and  became 
possessed  of  it  in  some  way  or  other  by  sending  Brother  Townsend  on 
a  "foreign  mission." 

There  were  perhaps  a  dozen  stores  on  Main  Street  in  1866-67, 
owned  by  Gentiles,  all  the  others  belonged  to  Mormon  merchants, 
and,  strange  as  it  may  appear  to  the  outside  Christian  world,  the 
majority  of  these  Gentile  merchants  were  Jews. 


GENTILES  FROM  JERUSALEM. 

Here  Brigham  and  the  Mormon  faith  had  forced  the  solution  of 
the  problem  for  which  the  whole  Christian  world  had  battled  without 
success  from  the  birth  of  Christ.  In  the  valley  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake 
every  "  Jew "  became  a  "  Gentile."  They  of  all  mankind,  would 
make  no  discrimination,  and  the  "Jew"  became  absorbed  in  the 
"Gentiles."  The  prosperous  Gentile  merchants,  however,  were 
an  eyesore  to  the  Mormon  leaders,  and  they  openly  declared  war 
upon  them  from  the  platform  of  the  Tabernacle.  But  the  preach- 
ing of  the  leaders  against  the  Gentile  merchants  did  not  succeed 
in  preventing  the  Mormon  people  from  trading  with  them.  The 
great  laws  of  trade  and  commerce  prevailed  in  the  valley  just  the 
same  as  in  all  other  parts  of  the  earth.  The  purchaser  would  go 
where  he  could  obtain  the  most  for  his  means.  When  called  before 
Brigham  to  answer  for  this  violation  of  the  rule,  many  resorted  to 


286  ECHOES  FROM  THE  EOCKY  MOUNTAIXS. 

artifice.  Those  from  the  country  would  enter  the  plea  of  ignorance. 
They  would  declare  they  could  not  discern  a  "Mormon"  from  a 
"Gentile"  store  inasmuch  as  frequently  nearly  all  their  employes 
would  be  men  in  full  faith  and  accord  with  the  Mormon  religion. 

To  overcome  this  statue  of  affairs,  Brigham  Young  conceived  a 
"working  plan."  On  the  8th  of  October,  1868,  he  called  a  meeting  of 
all  Mormon  merchants,  and  directed  that  a  certain  figure  or  emblem 
should  be  placed  upon  the  sign  board  of  every  Mormon  store.  This 
motto,  which  he  had  already  improvised,  he  declared  should  be  the 
following  characters,  "  Holiness  to  the  Lord,"  placed  over  an  all-seeing 
eye.  "With  this  to  point  the  way  unerringly,  there  would  be  no  fur- 
ther excuse  for  a  violation  of  the  command  of  non-intercourse  between 
Mormon  and  Gentile.  Suddenly  these  emblems  appeared  in  bright 
colors  over  everv  Mormon  store  in  the  city.  The  evil  did  not,  how- 
ever, abate  with  the  new  sign-boards.  The  'Mormons  would  trade  with 
the  Gentiles,  because  they  obtained  better  goods  at  cheaper  prices. 
Thev  simply  followed  the  law  of  human  nature.  Brigham  was  sorely 
perplexed.  He  would  not,  however,  yield  to  the  inevitable.  He  con- 
trived another  and  more  effective  plan,  which,  while  appearing  to 
operate  favorably,  conspiretl  to  the  ruin  of  a  large  number  of  the 
smaller  merchants  of  the  Mormon  faith. 

One  day  a  Mormon  merchant  asked  permission  to  establish  on  a 
small  scale  a  system  of  cooperative  stores  for  the  Mormon  settlements 
in  the  Territor\\  Brigham  replied :  "  Let  that  pass  for  the  present  I " 
But  he  had  grasped  the  idea,  and  now  proposed  to  establish,  the  same 
system  on  a  mighty  scale. 

Brigham  proposed  to  establish  a  grand  cooperative  commercial 
system.  All  the  Mormon  merchants  were  directed  to  deliver  over 
their  goods  and  form  one  general  wholesale  cooperative  store  that  would 
supply  branch  stores  in  every  ward  of  the  cit\'^  and  all  the  settlements 
throughout  the  Territory.  This  organization  was  effected  early  in 
1S69.  Brigtam  Young  was  president;  TVilUam  H.  Hooper,  then  a 
delegate  in  Congress,  vice-president,  and  the  apostles,  George  A. 
Smith,  George  Q.  Cannon,  Horace  Eldredge,  William  Jennings  and 
Henrv  TT.  Lawrence  a  board  of  five  directors.  There  was  also  a  secre- 
tary and  a  superintendent.  Thus  was  Zions  Cooperative  Mercantile 
Institution  established  to  blot  out  the  Gentile  merchants  and  their 
rapidly  growing  influence  and  to  pave  the  way  to  greater  wealth  and 


ECHOES    FRO]H    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  287 

influence  of  the  Prophet.  A  few  of  the  more  wealthy  mercliants 
survived  this  commercial  war,  but  all  of  the  smaller  merchants,  Mor- 
mon and  Gentile,  succumbed  to  the  inevitable  and  lost  everything. 

This  system  operated  exceedingly  well  for  a  while,  and  Brigham 
Young  found  it  a  profitable  source  of  wealth  without  labor  or  capital. 
It  added  many  dollars  to  his  already  plethoric  purse.  But  the 
development  of  the  mines,  which  began  with  the  advent  of  the  railroad, 
attracted,  together  with  the  building  of  the  road,  many  thousands  of 
Gentiles,  who  purchased  large  supplies  for  the  prosecution  of  this  new 
branch  of  industry.  Again  the  tide  turned.  Walker  Brothers  and 
many  Gentile  merchants  and  operators  became  immensely  wealthy. 
The  shackles  in  a  degree  were  stricken  from  the  limbs  of  the  Saints  by 
certain  schisms  that  arose  in  the  church. 

The  visit  and  preaching  in  Salt  Lake  City  of  the  sons  of  Joseph 
Smith,  their  early  prophet,  against  polygamy  and  in  favor  of  a  reor- 
ganized church,  the  establishment  of  a  liberal  Mormon  paper  or 
magazine,  the  disfellowship  and  excommunication  of  seven  prominent 
Mormons,  all  of  official  position,  because  of  a  declaration  "  that  the 
Almighty  never  intended  the  priesthood  to  do  their  thinking,"  and 
other  influences  of  like  character,  operated  upon  the  Mormon  mind  and 
aided  in  the  breaking  away  of  many  from  their  allegiance  to  the 
Mormon  hierarchy  and  the  establishment  of  a  liberal  party.  They 
held  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  Mormon  people  to  aid  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  mineral  wealth  of  the  Territory.  By  that  means  they 
would  themselves  become  wealthy,  and  no  longer  be  under  'the  thral- 
dom of  the  church  leaders,  who,  with  Brigham  Young  as  their  chief, 
kept  them  in  ignorance  through  poverty,  and  in  poverty  so  as  to 
more  thoroughly  become  their  masters  through  their  ignorance  and 
superstition.  The  vast  mineral  wealth  of  Utah  began  to  be  developed 
for  the  first  time  by  Mormon  brawn  and  capital  since  their  entry  into 
the  valley.  A  year  after  this  liberal  movement  began,  matters  had  so 
changed  that,  during  the  conference,  the  Gentile  stores  were  so 
crowded  with  purchasers  that  it  was  with  difficulty  they  could  all  be 
served. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CAICP  DOUGLAS-COXTLICT  BETWEEN  rXITED  STATES  TROOPS  AXD  MORMON  OF- 
FICIALS-ASSASSIN  ATIOXS  BV- MOIiMOXS— THE  DAXITE5— ORIGIN  OF  THEIR 
ORDER-ITS  MISSION  AXD  ITS  31CRDEES  IN  THE  NAME  OF  THE  CHURCH  AND 
RELIGION— "BILL"  HICKMAN,  THE  CHIEF  OF  THE  DANITES-HISTORY  OF  HIS 
LIFE— "BILL"  HICKMAN-'S  CONFESSION  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES  DISTRICT  AT- 
TORNEY—EIGHTEEN PERSONS  ASSASSINATED  BY  HIS  HANDS-HE  KILLS  HIS 
OWN  BROTHER-IN-LAW  IN  THE  PRESENCE  OF  HIS  SISTER,  IN  THE  NAME  OF 
THE  LORD. 

One  of  the  principal  objects  of  interest  surrounding  Salt  T^ke 
City  was  Camp  Douglas,  situated  on  an  eminence  some  distance  from 
the  eastern  base  of  the  Wahsatch  Mountains,  and  commanding:  at  lonsr 
range  the  entire  cit\\  It  was  sufficient  in  proportions  to  contain  a 
force  of  2,000  men,  but  there  was  seldom  more  than  one  regiment,  and 
frequently  not  more  than  six  companies. 

At  the  time  of  my  sojourn  in  the  valley  this  camp  or  fort  was  in 
command  of  CoL  William  H.  Lewis,  a  brave  and  genial  officer  of 
the  United  States  army,  whom  I  learned  not  alone  to  respect  very 
highly  for  his  many  soldierly  qualities,  but  to  love  for  his  noble  deeds 
and  warm  and  generous  nature.  He  was  a  most  accomplislied  officer, 
a  strict  discipUnarian  when  duty  called  into  exercise  those  qualities  of 
a  superior  officer,  but  a  kind  commander,  who  ever  sought  the  comfort 
and  health  of  his  troops  and  inspired  within  them  love  and  respect. 

As  the  Mormon  people  seldom  opened  their  houses  for  the  enter- 
tainment of  the  Gentile  portion  of  the  community,  but  looked  upon 
them  as  enemies  and  hostile  invaders  of  their  Teriitory,  who  came  into 
their  midst  for  purposes  of  gain  or  mischief,  and  as  the  Grentile  popu- 
lation general!}'  jwssessed  neither  homes  nor  other  places  of  entertain- 
ment or  amusement,  but,  less  from  choice  than  necessity,  were  com- 
pelled to  board  at  the  hotels  at  high  rates,  they  were  unable  to  enter- 
tain each  other.  In  this  state  of  affairs  Camp  Douglas  offereil  the 
sole  relief  afforded  the  Gentiles.  There  were  many  fine  ladies  among 
that  element  of  the  population,  highly  educated  and  very  intelligent 
from  study,  travel  and  observation.  The  wives  of  the  officers  were  oi 
the  same  class,  and  consequently  there  was  a  "  community  of  feeling  '*^ 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  289 

among  them  that  brought  them  naturally  into  close  relations.  Many 
indeed  were  the  pleasant  entertainments  and  reunions  indulged  in  by 
us  all.  It  was  always  a  merry  ride  to  the  camp,  and  a  hearty  greeting 
ever  met  us  as  we  tumbled  out  of  the  coach  or  dropped  upon  the 
ground  from  the  driver's  box.  And  then  the  dances,  the  merry-go- 
rounds,  the  suppers,  the  wine,  the  "  Yalley  Tan  "  or  the  States'  product, 
the  smokes  and  long  talks  and  reminiscences  of  battlefield,  march  and 
bivouac ;  beautiful  women,  brave  men,  and  the  glorious  scenery  of  the 
Eocky  Mountains,  lit  to  our  view  by  heaven's  lamp  swinging  in  its 
silvery  orbit  high  over  the  tallest  peak  that  towered  above  the  lofty 
domes  and  minarets  of  the  Wahsatch  range.  Ah,  happy  days  of  early 
manhood  and  womanhood  !  Ye  are  like  a  flower  that  hath  withered 
on  the  plains  that  once  bloomed  in  its  fragrant  beauty.  Ye  are  the 
reminders  of  the  most  beautiful  part  of  our  lives,  the  sap  of  our  nature, 
the  garland  of  happy  thoughts  springing  like  a  thing  of  life  from  the 
hidden  recesses  of  our  being.  Ye  are  the  golden  fruit  we  plucked  with 
our  own  hands  from  the  tree  of  life,  preserved  lo,  these  many  years 
by  our  fondest  and  dearest  memories.  Ye  are  the  visions  of  day 
dreams  lost  amid  the  slumbers  of  the  years,  but  rising  at  our  bidding 
on  the  other  side,  like  a  rainbow  from  a  chasm.  Ye  come  back  to  ns 
in  the  sound  of  the  stream  that  memory  brings  close  to  our  side.  Ye 
are  before  us  in  every  star  that  twinkles  over  the  wasted  camp-fires. 
We  hear  you  in  every  mountain  breeze  that  fans  our  wrinkled  brows. 
Ye  come  at  the  bidding  of  a  faded  flower  that  some  sweet  hand  had 
pressed  and  given  us  and  which  we  laid  away  with  tenderness,  and  the 
little  line  written  upon  the  torn-off  margin  of  a  newspaper  by  one  we 
loved  and  hid  away  from  human  eyes  to  feast  upon  alone.  In  every 
gentle  impulse  and  sweet  and  tender  thought,  partaking  of  a  higher 
and  holier  purpose ;  in  the  fuller  retrospection  of  our  lives  ye  all  come 
back  to  us  over  the  billows  of  time  with  the  soft  whir  of  angel  wings. 
Of  all  that  camp  of  life  and  beauty  of  twenty  years  ago  how  few  are 
left  and  how  scattered  are  those  remaining ! 

The  sign-post  pointing  beyond  the  limits  of  life  tells  where  many 
have  gone.  They  have  died  upon  Indian  battle-fields.  They  have 
fallen  by  the  wayside.  Many  of  the  beautiful  lie  upon  the  western 
hills,  where  early  sunlight  gilds  their  graves  with  a  golden  glory. 
Others  are  mature  mothers  with  fair  daughters,  who  make  merry  with 
song  and  dance  the  camps  of  to-day,  just  as  their  mothers  did  those  of 

19 


290  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOCNTAIXS. 

the  "long  ago."  Of  all  the  Gentile  element  that  mingled  with  them  at 
the  frolics  and  the  dance  scarce  one  remains  in  the  vallev  to  tell  the 
story  of  their  earlier  days.  The  brave  comriiander  of  the  post — the 
accomplished  soldier,  the  genial  friend  and  comrade,  the  noble  Lewis — 
felt  his  life  pass  away  drop  by  drop  from  an  Indian  bullet,  in  an 
engagement  on  September  2Tth,  1878,  with  Dull  Knife's  band  of  Xorth- 
ern  Che^-ennes,  who  had  left  their  agency  at  Fort  Reno,  Indian  Terri- 
tory, and  were  raiding  the  settlements  of  Kansas  on  their  way  north. 
Colonel  Lewis  was  in  command  of  a  detachment  of  the  Nineteenth 
Infantry,  mounted,  and  Fourth  Cavalry,  and  had  overtaken  the  Indians 
near  Punished  Woman's  Fork,  southeast  of  Wallace,  and  was  leading 
in  the  attack  when  this  mortal  wound  was  received.  Althouffli  the 
savages  were  a  much  superior  force,  well  armed  and  drilled  and  of  the 
fairest  fighting  qualities,  they  were  repulsed  and  driven  before  them 
by  the  splendid  bravery  of  his  men.  But  the  gallant  commander  fell 
at  the  first  fire,  shot  in  the  leg,  the  ball  grazing  the  artery  and  permit- 
ting the  life  blood  to  escape.  Unfortunately  there  was  no  surgeon 
accompanying  the  scouting  command,  and,  binding  up  his  wounds  as 
best  they  could,  they  laid  their  commander  on  a  stretcher  and  started 
for  Fort  Wallace,  the  nearest  spot  from  which  they  could  obtain  sur- 
gical aid,  but  distant  many  miles.  And  then  began  the  solemn  race  for 
life.  The  wound  itself  was  not  necessaril\"  fatal,  but  the  loss  of  blood 
the  evil.  Drop  by  drop  the  life  fluid  fell  from  the  lacerated  limb  and 
stained  the  ground  over  which  his  companions  hastenetl.  Could  he 
hold  out  until  the}'  reached  the  friendly  shelter  of  the  fort  where  sym- 
pathy and  science  would  blend  their  power  to  restore  him  once  more 
to  life  and  battle,  or  would  he  perish  from  exhaustion  on  the  way 
thither  ?  Hope  had  well  nigh  sprung  exultant  in  their  breast,  for  all 
but  fifty  miles  of  the  long  journe\'  was  complete,  traveling  with  all  the 
speed  the  wound  would  permit.  Alas  I  at  this  moment  the  wound  that 
had  been  partially  held  in  check  through  their  simple  appliances  now 
burst  forth  afresh  and  drained  the  already  depleted  veins  and  arteries 
of  their  life-sustaining  fluid.  Almost  within  sight  of  the  fort  and  res- 
cuing friends  he  perished,  and  the  spirit  of  the  noble  Lewis  joined  the 
innumerable  band  who  had  traveled  on  before  from  march,  bivouac 
and  battle-field.  He  was  buried  with  military  honoi*s,  and  the  United 
States  authorities  named  a  post  upon  the  Indian  frontier  after  the 
lamented  officer.     Peace  to  your  ashes,  brave,  genial,  loving  Lewis ! 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  291 

But  Camp  Douglas  has  been  the  scene  of  events  far  more  stirring 
than  those  of  a  social  nature.  Grim-visaged  -war  has  well  nigh  rolled 
its  echoes  at  its  wrinkled  base;  shotted  guns  have  been  ppinted  at  a 
city  that  lay  in  quiet  beauty  far  down  in  the  valley;  drilled  men  have 
stood  in  serried  ranks  waiting  the  word  of  command  to  "  move  on  !  ^' 
Fleeting  moments  have  hurried  by  wdth  rapid  gait  that  would  end  the 
hour  of  halting  on  the  narrow  frontier  that  lay  between  peace  and  war; 
and  all  awaiting  a  single  word  from  the  great  high  priest  of  the  Mor- 
mon Church,  whether  he  would  obey  the  laws,  or,  failing  therein,  bring 
on  a  conflict  between  the  United  States  authorities  and  the  Mormon 
people.  ITot  once  but  often  has  this  occurred,  and  only  the  firmness  of 
the  officer  in  command  of  the  camp,  and  the  knowledge  on  the  part  of 
Brigham  Young  and  his  coadjutors  that  a  conflict  with  the  military 
authorities  of  the  United  States  Government  must  be  the  destruction 
by  shot  and  shell  of  their  city  and  the  annihilation  of  their  prosperity 
as  a  sect  has  prevented  a  collision  that  would  have  resulted  in  bloodshed 
and  ruin.  This  fort  was  originally  laid  out  and  built  by  Gen.  P. 
Conner,  in  command  of  the  California  troops  during  the  war  between 
the  States. 

A  collision  occurred  between  this  officer  and  the  head  of  the  church 
that  almost  resulted  in  the  bombardment  of  the  town.  Still  later  the 
camp  was  commanded  by  Gen.  Henry  A.  Morrow,  of  whom  I  have 
hitherto  spoken,  and  the  arrest  and  imprisonment  of  members  of  his 
command  and  the  refusal  of  the  Mormon  authorities  to  release  them 
upon  the  imperative  order  of  their  commanding  officer  produced  another 
conflict  of  authority  that  would  have  resulted  in  a  demonstration  upon 
the  city  but  for  their  timely  surrender.  This,  however,  was  not  accom- 
plished until  he  had  shotted  his  guns  and  placed  his  whole  command  in 
military  array,  which  being  witnessed  by  a  delegation  of  Mormons, 
whom  their  chief  had  sent  to  parley  with  the  commander,  and  who 
returned  with  this  information  and  the  last  word  from  Morrow  that, 
unless  his  men  were  brought  within  his  lines  by  a  certain  hour,  he 
would  open  fire  upon  the  town,  they  were  finally  surrendered  and 
returned  to  their  camp. 

Camp  Douglas  has  ever  been  a  "city  of  refuge"  for  those  Gentiles 
who  had  invoked  the  wrath  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  by  the  denunciation 
of  the  polygamous  part  of  their  creed  and  thereby  subjected  themselves- 
to  physical  violence.     I  recall  an  instance  that  came  under  my  own 


292  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

observation.  The  Gentile  organ  of  Salt  Lake  City  was  at  that  time 
called  TtiC  Salt  Lahe  Reporter^  and  was  own.(^  and  edited  by  a  Cali- 
fornian  named  Saul,  who,  by  a  series  of  caustic  articles  and  editorials 
severely  censuring  the  unlawful  practice  of  the  Mormon  community, 
had  filled  the  hearts  of  their  Mormon  leaders  with  wrath  and  hatred. 
Just  about  that  time  the  fall  conference  of  the  church  began  its  dailv 
sessions  in  the  Tabernacle,  presided  over  by  Brigham  Young  and  the 
twelve  apostles.  The  people  had  assembled  from  all  parts  of  the  Terri- 
tory, and  firm  believers  in  the  faith  were  there  to  do  the  bidding  of 
their  masters. 

It  was  not  long  before  Brigham  Young  began  his  usual  tirade 
against  the  Gentile  element  of  their  population.  Always  severe,  on 
this  occasion  he  became  furious  in  his  denunciation  of  the  editor  of  the 
Gentile  paper  and  his  well-known  friends,  calling  each  bv  their  names, 
and  stating  to  his  followers,  in  strong  terms,  that  the  "fate of  such  men 
should  be  a  rope  and  a  telegraph  pole." 

This,  of  course,  was  construed  by  all  the  Gentiles  present,  among 
them  the  editor  of  the  obnoxious  paper,  as  an  intimation  on  the  part  of 
the  leaders  of  the  church  that  their  hasty  demise  would  not  be  regarded 
by  them  as  entirely  objectionable. 

Remembering  the  fate  of  Dr.  J.  K.  Robinson,  a  most  splendid  man, 
humane  physician  and  Christian  gentleman,  who  came  into  the  Territory 
in  1864,  as  assistant  surgeon  of  the  United  States  army,  and  who  resigned 
to  practice  medicine  in  Salt  Lake  City,  and  who  was  assassinated  when 
but  thirty  years  old,  having  incurred  the  displeasure  of  the  Mormon 
leaders  by  laying  claim,  under  the  law  and  in  accordance  with  its  forms, 
to  a  certain  piece  of  ground  on  which  was  located  the  now  famous  "Hot 
Springs,"  and  who  was  called  from  his  bed  in  the  dead  of  night  on  a 
supposed  errand  of  professional  mercy,  and  murdered  within  half  a 
block  of  his  house  by  those  believed  to  be  paid  and  sworn  agents  of 
the  church,  specially  deputized  to  perform  such  deeds  of  bloodshed — 
a  band  of  Mormons  known  as  "Z^a«i^«"  or  "  .4f^7?^6'r*,"  a  bloody, 
peculiar,  mysterious  organization,  which  presently  will  be  more  fully 
described. 

Recalling  all  of  the  facts  herein  related  and  the  untimely  end  of 
others  who  had  incurred  the  displeasure  of  the  Mormon  Church  leaders 
J)y  this  same  band  of  assassins,  whose  peculiar  death-mark  was  a  jiistol 
wound  at  or  near  the   heart,  and  two  wounds  by  dirk-knives,  one  on 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  293 

either  side  of  the  pistol  wound;  recalling  likewise  the  murder  of 
Brassfield  early  one  evening,  when  the  streets  were  alive  witli  people, 
who  was  shot  in  the  back  by  a  concealed  assassin  while  walking 
on  Main  Street  in  the  -company  of  the  United  States  marshal,  J.  K, 
Hosmer;  and  the  killing  of  "  Negro  Tom  "  on  the  ground  of  a  "  woman 
scrape,"  but  really  because  he  had  offered  to  testify  in  certain  polyg- 
amous cases  before  the  United  States  courts ;  recalling  the  assassina- 
tion of  Hatch  and  Spence  and  the  three  apostates,  Potter,  Wilson  and 
Walker,  each  butchered  in  cold  blood  by  the  vengeful,  merciless  mon- 
sters already  described  as  members  of  the  horrible  order  of  the  "  Dan- 
ites"  or  Sons  of  Dan;  recalling  all  these  murders,  conscientiously 
believed  to  have  been  instigated  by  the  leaders  of  the  church,  occurring 
as  they  did  in  the  midst  of  an  otherwise  peaceful  community,  where 
order  and  quietude  were  the  inflexible  rule,  when  street  brawls  and 
rioting  were  unknown,  and  the  outward  forms  of  morality  so  closely 
observed  that  bar-rooms  were  prohibited  and  houses  of  prostitution  a 
myth — all  of  them  reminders  of  what  might  be  in  store  for  those  who 
had  now  received  the  open  condemnation  of  their  church — it  was  no 
wonder  that  the  friends  of  free  speech,  the  advocates  of  liberal  pro- 
gression, and  the  opposers  of  Mormon  polygamy,  should  fear  the  same 
dark  unseen  hand  of  the  Danite  who  had  sworn  to  fulfill  the  bloody 
prophesies  of  the  head  of  the  church  and  implicitly  obey  his  commands, 
and  who  in  turn  as  .leader  relied  in  the  main  for  the  propagation  of 
his  will  upon  the  fear  inspired  everywhere  in  his  spiritual  realm,  by 
the  crimson  acts  of  this  mysterious  Order  of  Danites.  And  what  was 
this  "Order?" 

This  was  an  organization  in  fellowship  with  the  Mormon  Church, 
reliable  in  their  absolute  adhesion  to  the  faith,  and  in  their  willingness 
to  obey  "  counsel  "^-otherwise  the  will  and  command  of  the  Mormon 
leaders.  Their  chief  calling  was  to  assassinate  all  persons  inimical  to 
the  church,  who  had  been  so  declared  by  the  highest  authority,  and  to 
plunder  or  destroy  the  property  of  the  offenders.  They  are  said  to  have 
been  organized  in  the  infancy  of  the  church,  especially  during  the 
troublous  times  in  the  State  of  Missouri,  and  were  divided  into  com- 
panies of  tens  and  fifties  commanded  by  officers  duly  appointed  with 
signs  and  grip  by  which  they  identified  each  other  at  all  times,  and 
were  bound  by  the  most  sacred  obligations,  to  preserve  in  secresy  their 
diabolical  acts. 


2'J4 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 


Elder  John  Hyde,  in  his  historical  work  upon  "  Mormonism, 
its  Leaders  and  Designs.*'  pages.  104. 105,  thus-describes  its  origin: 

"  When  the  citizens  of  Carroll  and  Davis  counties,  Missouri,  began 
to  threaten  the  Mormons  with  expulsion  in  1838",  a  'death  society'  was 
organized  under  the  direction  of  Sidney  Rigdon  and  with  the  sanction 
of  Smith.  Its  first  captain  was  an  ajxjstle,  David  Patten,  a7^«  Captain 
'Fearnaught*.  Its  object  was  the  punishment  of  the  obnoxious.  Some 
time  elapsed  before  finding  a  suitable  name.  They  desired  one  that 
would  combine  spiritual  authority  with  a  suitable  sound.  Micah  rv :  13, 
furnished  the  first  name,  'Arise  and  thresh,  O  daughter  of  Zion,  for  I 
will  make  thy  horn  iron  and  thy  hoofs  brass,  and  thou  shalt  beat  in 
pieces  many  people,  and  I  will  consecrate  their  gain  to  the  Lord  of  the 
whole  earth.'  This  furnished  them  with  a  pretext,  it  accurately 
described  their  intentions,  and  the}"  called  themselves  the  'Daughters  of 

Zion.'  Some  ridicule 
was  made  at  these 
bearded  and  bloody 
'  Daughters,'  and  the 
name  did  not  sit 
easily.  '  Destroying 
Angels'  came  next; 
the  'Big  fan  of  the 
thresher  that  should 
thoroughly  purge  the 
floor,'  was  tried  and 
dropped.  Genesis 
XLix:  IT.  furnished 
the  named  finally  as- 
sumed. The  verse  is 
quite  significant: 
'Dan  shall  be  a  ser- 
pent by  the  way,  an 
adder  in  the  path 
that  biteth  the  horse's 
heel  so  that  his  rider 
shall  fall  backward.' 
The  'Sons  of  Dan' 
A  DA^^TE.  W21S  the  style   they 


ECHOES     FROM   THE   ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 


295 


adopted, and  many 
have  been  the  times 
that  they  have 
been  adders  in  the 
path,  and  many  a 
man  has  fallen 
backward  and  has 
been  seen  no 
more.  Such  was 
the  origin  of  the 
Danites,  whose  ter- 
rorism has  pervad- 
ed all  ranks  of  the 
Mormon  Church 
and  priesthood, 
and  whose  ven- 
geance has  not  a- 
lone  been  wreaked 
upon  the  Gentile, 
but  by  order  of  the 
leaders,  upon  of- 
fending elders 
in  the  church, 
Brigham  Young 
himself  has  often  publicly  declared  the  existence  of  such  an  organiza- 
tion, and  notably  so  when  from  the  platform  of  the  Tabernacle  he  said: 
"If  men  come  here  and  do  not  behave  themselves  they  will  not  only 
find  the  Danites  biting  their  horse's  heels,  but  the  scoundrels  will  find 
something  hiting  their  heels.  In  my  plain  remarks  I  call  things  by  their 
own  names." — Deseret  News.,  Yol.  YII,  p.  143. 

Many  Mormons  became  famous  for  their  dark  deeds  as  members 
of  this  organization,  among  them  John  D.  Lee,  executed  by  the  United 
States'  authorities  for  the  horrible  butchery  of  the  Arkansas  emigrants 
at  Mountain  Meadows  in  1857;  Porter  Eockwell,  a  noted  leader  and 
scout,  and  Bill  Hickman,  who  became  a  Avitness  for  the  Government 
on  the  trial  of  Brigham  Young,  Bill  Hickman  et  al.,  for  murder  com- 
mitted 200  miles  east  of  Salt  Lake  City  during  the  approach  of  John- 
ston's army  in  that  year.     Hickman  for  many  years  was  the  leader  of 


JOHN  D.  LEE. 


296 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOL'XTAIXS. 


the  Danites,  or  Avenging  Angels,  and  George   C.   Bates,  as  United 
States  district  attorney  for  Utah,  states  that  \vhile  preparing  for  trial 

upon  that  indictment,  it  be- 
came his  duty  to  examine  the 
witness,  Hickman,  privately, 
with  a  view  of  ascertaininsr 
the  nature  and  extent  of  his 
testimony  and  its  credibilit}'. 
As  an  illustration  of  the  char- 
acter and  ferocity  of  the  men 
composing  this  band  of 
'•Destroying  Angels  of  the 
Lord, ''  I  quote  a  part  of  the 
statement  made  by  the  dis- 
trict attorney  relating  to  this 
witness : 

"  This  chief  of  the  Danites 
was  the  most  extraordinary 
human  being  that  I  have  ever 
yet  seen  in  all  my  profes- 
sional and  oflBcial  life,  reach- 
ing back  half  a  century.  Of 
course,  as  he  had  turned 
State's  evidence,  and  was  to 
be  permitted  to  escape  all  punishment  for  his  crime,  and  as  he  was 
dependent  to  a  great  degree  on  my  recommendation  for  mercy,  he  was 
harmless  and  obsequious  to  the  last  degree,  and  I  felt  absolutely  safe 
in  all  my  long  intercourse  with  him,  which  lasted  some  two  or  three 
years,  all  the  time  that  I  was  United  States  district  attorney,  and 
down  to  March,  1S73.  On  closing  the  door  I  took  my  seat  on  the  bed, 
pencil  in  hand,  and  Bill  took  the  only  chair.  As  I  began  I  took  a 
careful  look  at  m\'  witness,  companion  and  cooperator  in  the  prosecu- 
tion of  President  Young,  and  never  can  I  forget  that  portrait.  About 
six  feet  high,  he  was  an  immense  mass  of  muscle  and  flesh,  with  huge 
arms  and  legs,  very  dark  complexion,  heavy  eyebrows ;  his  short  bris- 
tling hair,  dark  gray,  coming  down  over  his  low  brow  and  cut  like  that 
of  a  Comanche  Indian,  directly  square  across  his  forehead,  an  immense 
bull  neck,  with  a   skin  like  that  of  a  rhinoceros,  hands  like    iron, 


BILL  HICKMAN. 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MODNTAIl^'S.  297 

immense  feet  clad  in  huge  miner's  boots,  red  undershirt,  and,  what 
was  more  striking  than  all,  his  right  eye  fixed  into  the  socket  and  cov- 
ered all  over  with  blood,  while  his  left  one  absolutely  sparkled  with  a 
hellish  glitter  and  malice,  reminding  me  greatly  of  Bill  Sykes  in  his 
last  hours,  after  his  murder  of  Nancy,  and  I  shuddered  all  over  as  he 
stared  at  me  with  that  horrid  eye  like  old  Chouettsinthe  '"Wandering 
Jew. '  I  stared  at  him  and  he  at  me  until  he  was  first  to  speak,  when 
he  said  :  '  'Squire,  you  must  give  me  some  whisky  before  we  go  to 
work,  I  can  not  talk  without  it. '  And  directly  at  my  request  the 
marshal  brought  a  quart  bottle  of  the  very  best  whisky  which  the  Mor- 
mon druggists  there  keep.  Taking  the  bottle,  for  we  had  no  glass,  he 
insisted  that  I  should  drink  first,  evidently  fearing  that  there  might  be 
drugs  in  his  draught,  and  so  I  tasted  it  and  handed  it  to  him,  when  he 
drained  more  than  half  the  quart.  Smacking  his  lips,  he  said,  '  'Squire, 
that  is  good;  now  I  am  ready;  go  ahead.'  Soto  test  him  and  his 
memory,  I  told  him  to  begin  where  he  began  with  the  Mormons  and 
tell  me  the  entire  history  of  his  life  and  his  connection  with  Brigham 
Young,  and  bring  it  down  to  the  matters  charged  in  the  indictment  — 
Sprague,  I  think,  was  the  murdered  man's  name  —  and  give  me  the 
details  of  that  murder  and  the  minutest  incidents  connected  with  it. 
Smacking  his  lips  and  taking  another  swig  at  the  whisky,  and  fixing 
the  blood-shot  eye  on  my  forehead,  and  the  other  eye  of  the  basilisk 
on  mine,  he  began,  and  with  my  pencil  I  noted  what  he  said,  but  a 
little  of  which  I* can  now  recall,  but  enough  to  make  me  shudder  even 
yet  at  its  fearful  details. 

First  and  foremost,  he  was  born  on  the  frontier  of  Missouri,  where 
he  began  his  life  fighting  Indians  and  negroes,  many  of  whom 
he  cut  and  shot,  and  spent  all  his  early  days  at  horse  races,  cock-fight- 
ing and  shooting  matches,  and  so  he  became  an  expert  card  player,  a 
magnificent  horse-rider  and  breaker,  a  man  who  could  cut  a  twig  at 
eighty  rods  with  his  rifle,  and  could  wing  a  pigeon  with  his  revolver, 
could  throw  all  men  in  a  wrestle,  and  could  drink  more  whisky  squat 
lower,  jump  higher,  run  faster  and  whip  any  man  in  all  that  border- 
ruffian  region  of  Western  Missouri.  Indeed,  young  Bill  Hickman  was 
the  pride  and  boast  and  glory  and  terror  of  all  the  region  around 
where  he  lived.  When  about  twenty-one  he  attended  a  Methodist 
camp  meeting  to  make  fun  of  it,  and,  overtaken  by  the  Holy  Spirit, 
entered  the  ring,  was  converted  to  the  Lord,  and  became  a  Methodist 


298  tCHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

exhorter,  where  bis  loud  voice,  his  loud  psalm-singing  and  terrific 
prayer  soon  made  bim  a  wonder  among  saints  and  sinners.  Soon  after 
his  conversion  he  strafffjled  off  to  Council  Bluffs,  in  tiie  winter  of  1S41, 
where  Brigham  Young  was  then  gathering  together  the  Latter  Day 
Saints  for  their  grand  march  across  the  Great  American  Desert,  and  then 
and  there  Hickman  soon  became  a  leader  in  the  prayers  and  praises  and 
hymns  of  this  strange  body  of  people,  and  at  once  commanded  the  con- 
fidence, and  soon  the  hearty  attachment  and  friendship,  of  their  great 
leader,  their  president,  seer  and  revelator,  Brigham  Young,  as  his 
religious  zeal,  his  immense  strength,  and  all  his  characteristics  pointed 
him  out  as  the  very  man  for  any  wicked  deeds  or  enterprises  that  his 
chief  might  need  or  desire.  According  to  his  own  statement,  be  soon 
encountered  there  at  Council  Bluffs  a  rival  of  his  own,  and  a  thorn  in 
the  side  of  Brigham  Young  —  a  young  exhorter,  a  sixteenth-blooded 
Indian,  whose  eloquent  reUgious  exhortations  and  personal  beauty 
attracted  the  Monnon  women,  and  at  Brigham  Young's  suggestion  one 
night  Hickman  shot  bim  on  the  banks  of  the  Missouri,  about  a  mile 
from  camp,  buried  his  body  in  the  dark  and  turbid  waters,  from  his 
canoe,  but  took  his  scalp,  carefully  wrapped  up  in  a  cotton  cloth,  and 
carried  it  all  the  way  to  Salt  Lake,  where  Brigham  Young  used  to  caress 
it  with  his  fat  hands,  and  where  it  was  kept  for  many  a  long  year, 
as  the  Indians  keep  scalps,  as  a  memento  of  Hickman's  devotion  to 
his  lord  and  master,  Brigham  Young. 

"  Soon  after  the  settlement  of  the  Mormons  at  Salt  Lake  one  of  his 
daughters  married  a  Gentile — ^  foreigner  I  think — and  after,  as  husband 
and  wife,  they  had  lived  together  and  had  children,  one  moonlight 
night  Hickman  and  his  gang  of  Danites  were  riding  past  his  own 
daughter's  residence  out  near  the  lake,  when,  screaming  and  yelling  like 
demons,  they  rode  to  the  front  door,  and  Hickman  called  for  a 
bucket  of  water,  which  the  daughter  brought  out,  and,  after  quenching 
his  thirst,  as  his  son-in-law  appeared  at  the  front  door,  he  deUber- 
ately  shot  him  dead  with  his  double-barreled  gun  at  the  very  feet  of  his 
own  daughter,  screaming  out :  'So  die  all  damned  Gentiles,  enemies  of 
the  Latter-Day  Saints  of  Jesus  Christ.' 

"  His  ferocity,  his  murderous  instincts,  and  his  fearful  brutality 
made  him  chief  of  the  Danites  for  man}'  a  long  year,  and  as  such  he 
was  the  great  executioner  of  all  those  who  dared  to  rebel  against  the 
Mormon  hierarchy,  and  he  gave  me  all  the  damnable  particulars  of  the 


HICKMAN  SHOOTING  HIS  SON-IN-LAW. 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  299 

repeated  taking  off  of  those  sentenced  to  death  by  his  superior  officers 
in  the  church,  and  in  it  all  he  vowed  that  he  had  acted  solely  under 
Divine  authority,  as  transmitted  to  him  from  God  himself,  by  and 
through  the  president,  prophet,  seer  and  revelator,  of  the  church  of 
Latter-Day  Saints  of  Jesus  Christ.  During  these  interviews  he  admitted 
his  individual  killing  at  various  times  of  eighteen  different  persons 
in  the  long  years  anterior  thereto,  and  in  each  and  every  instance  he 
claimed  that  he  was  inspired  by  and  acting  under  the  advice  and  by 
direction  of  Brigham  Young,  and  from  obedience  to  his  religious  views. 
But,  coming  down  to  the  case  at  bar,  he  stated  that  the  murdered  man 
described  in  the  indictment  against  Young  and  himself  was  a  spy  on 
the  Mormons,  who  had  carried  the  news  to  Johnston's  army;  that  he 
had  taken  him  as  a  prisoner  of  war,  and  that  Joseph  Young  had 
brought  him  word  that  the  president  wished  him  '  used  up ;'  that 
accordingly  they  went  into  camp,  and  when  all  were  asleep,  he  (Hick- 
man) took  an  ax,  and  with  its  head  beat  in  his  brains,  and  then  moved 
the  camp  fire  and  buried  his  body  in  the  ground  and  rebuilt  the  fire 
over  it,  so  that  its  ashes  covered  his  burial;  that  he  took  off  the  dead 
man's  pantaloons,  cut  them  off  so  as  to  fit  himself,  took  his  $780  in 
gold,  carried  it  to  Salt  Lake,  where  Brigham  Young  converted  the 
whole  of  it  to  his  own  use,  well  knowing  that  it  had  been  obtained  by 
murder ;  and  then  and  there  the  quarrel  began  which  ended  finally  in 
the  everlasting  feud  between  Brigham  Young  and  his  Destroying  Angel 
Bill  Hickman.  But  as  the  indictment  was  found  by  an  illegal  court 
and  jury,  and  I,  as  United  States  district  attorney,  Avas  adjudged  to 
have  no  legal  right  to  prosecute,  the  whole  matter  ended  with  these 
confessions  and  now  sleeps  in  the  graves  of  Brigham  Young  and  Bill 
Hickman  and  their  victims." 

Such  was  the  man  who  had  been  designated  by  the  leaders  of  the 
church  as  the  chief  of  their  "Destroying  Angels."  The  horrible 
massacre  of  the  Missouri  emigrants  at  Mountain  Meadow  from  wli;ch 
John  D.  Lee  paid  the  penalty  with  his  life,  was  equaled  in  ferocity  by 
the  lono^-continued  and  deliberate  murders  of  this  merciless  wretch — 
committed  in  the  name  of  the  Mormon  religion  and  its  leaders.  He 
died  in  Wyoming  Territory,  after  two  years  of  besotted  misery,  steeped 
in  whisky  and  opium — in  that  valley  where  he  had  fled  to  escape  the 
punishment  he  so  Avell  merited  for  his  brutal  crimes  committed  during 
his  twenty  years  of  slaughter. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  PKRSBCfmOX  OF  THE  GENTILES  — THE  LIFE  OF  THE  EDITOR  OF  THE  GEN- 
TILE PAPER  IX  SALT  LAKE  CITY  THREATENED  BY  MORMON  LEADERS  — THE 
BOLD  ATTITUDE  OF  THE  PAPER  — THE  MORMON  CX)N%'ENTION  —  BRIG  HAM'S 
SPEECH  ENRAGES  THE  XfULTlTUDE  —  THREATENED  DESTRUCTION  OF  THE 
GENTILE  PRESS  — ARMED  CITIZENS  BARRICADE  THE  ENTRANCE  TO  THE  ED- 
ITOR'S SANCTUM  AND  AWAIT  THE  ATTACK  — WORD  SECRETLY  CONVEYED  TO 
BRIGHAM  YOUNG  BY  COLONEL  LEWIS.  COMMANDING  THE  POST  AT  CAMP 
DOUGLAS  THAT  HE  WOULD  HOLD  HIM  PERSONALLY  RESPONSIBLE  FOR  ANY 
ATTACK  UPON  THE  LIVES  AND  PROPERTY  OF  THE  GENTILES  — BRIGHAM 
ALAB>rED  AND  CALLS  OFF  IN  HASTE  HIS  "DOGS  OF  WAR"  — THE  GOOD 
BISHOP  WOOLEY,  THE  FRIEND  OF  THE  GENTILES  — HIS  SUNDAY  EVENING 
DISCOUESES— HIS  QUAINT  SPEECHES. 

The  editor  of  the  Gentile  paper,  although  a  brave  and  thoroughly 
earnest  man  in  the  work  he  had  undertaken  to  perform,  did  not  care 
to  thus  ruthlessly  become  the  sacrifice  of  this  Jloloch,  and  so  wended 
his  way  to  Camp  Douglas,  and  related  the  whole  affair  to  the  com- 
manding officer  who,  while  offering  his  camp  as  a  place  of  protection 
in  case  of  need,  suggested  to  the  editor  to  return  to  his  labor  and 
proceed  with  his  regular  duties  as  if  nothing  extraordinary  had 
occurred  to  mar  his  peace  of  mind,  promising  to  give  all  needed  protec- 
tion in  case  an  act  of  open  violence  should  occur.  The  editor  did  not 
so  much  fear  an  attack  upon  his  life  as  the  open  threats  of  destroying 
his  presses  and  the  machinery  and  material  of  his  office,  which,  in  those 
days  of  slow  travel  before  the  construction  of  the  Pacific  Kailroad, 
would  have  involved  great  pecuniary  loss  as  well  as  infinite  delay  in 
replacing  them  from  the  distant  States. 

Acting  upon  the  suggestion  of  Colonel  Lewis,  he  returned  to  the 
city  and  called  a  number  of  his  friends  together  for  personal  consul- 
tation. Each,  while  disclaiming  any  desire  to  fan  the  flame  of  discon- 
tent, which  was  strongly  evidenced  by  the  excited  manner  of  large 
bands  of  Mormons  patrolling  Main  Street  on  which  the  office  of  the 
paper  was  located,  felt  that  the  critical  moment  had  come  when  it 
should  be  determined,  possibly  by  their  own  actions,  whether  free 
speech  and  an  untrammeled  press  should  survive  the  passions  of 
•the  hour.     If  they  should  suffer  tiieraselves  to  be  overawed  by  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  301 

determined  action  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  without  an  effort  on  their 
own  part  to  maintain  their  legal  rights,  there  was  no  hope  for  any 
further  usefulness  in  the  Territory  of  Utah.  It  was,  therefore,  deter- 
mined to  proceed  with  the  publication  of  the  paper,  and  to  the  author 
of  this  work,  who  formed  one  of  the  party  of  consultation,  was  dele- 
gated the  labor  of  writing  the  editorial  in  reply  to  the  threats  of 
violence  on  the  part  of  the  Mormon  leaders.  This  act  I  have  always 
thought  to  have  been  prompted  by  the  fact  that  I  had  never  been 
considered  as  belonging  to  the  extreme  radical  wing  of  the  Gentile 
element.  As  an  officer  of  the  United  States  Government,  I  had 
always  endeavored  to  preserve  kindly  relations  with  that  people, 
while  performing  the  duties  to  which  I  had  been  assigned,  in  an  impar- 
tial manner.  Occasionally,  when  discontinuing  a  useless  postoffice  I 
had  been  the  object  of  unfriendly  remarks  concerning  an  "assumption 
of  powers,"  etc.;  but  generally,  so  far  as  I  know,  I  was  tolerated  as 
much  as  any  Gentile  would  be  in  a  community  with  whose  ssntiments  it 
was  well  known  I  was  at  variance.  Still,  I  had  never  been  an  agitator, 
1  had  never  stood  upon  the  street  corners  denouncing  the  Mormon 
people  and  their  peculiar  doctrines  and  methods.  I  had  never  declared 
that  this  people,  their  homes,  and  all  the  results  of  their  skill  and 
industry  should  be  blotted  from  the  earth.  On  the  contrary,  I  had 
constantly  commended  the  great  work  they  had  performed  in  fashion- 
ing a  city  of  civilization  from  the  barren  rocks  and  rude  soil  that  lay 
beneath  the  rugged  mountains,  I  had  found  much  to  praise  in  a  truly 
earnest  manner,  and  whenever  called  upon  to  condemn  their  unlawful 
acts  in  the  open  practice  of  polygamy,  I  did  it  in  an  equally  earnest 
manner  directly  to  those  thus  engaged.  I  had  at  least  inspired  within 
them  a  personal  respect,  and  a  declaration  which  I  had  often  heard 
that  I  was  "  not  a  hypo(*ite  ! "  It  is  true,  I  had  as  strongly  as  lan- 
guage could  be  w^ritten,  urged  the  President  to  reaj)point  Judge  Titus 
as  a  concession  to  the  Gentile  element.  On  the  other  hand,  however, 
my  Gentile  friends  found  infinite  fault  because  I  always  recommended 
Mormons  for  the  postoiSces  of  the  smaller  towns,  and  because  I 
boarded  first  at  a  Mormon  hotel,  and  afterward  in  a  Mormon  lady's 
household,  and  did  not  patronize  the  "  only  Gentile  House!  " 

I  suppose  it  was  because  I  thus  occupied  this  passive  position  that 
I  was  chosen  to  write  the  editorial  which  appeared  on  the  day  follow- 
ing, and  which  I  reprint  from  a  copy  of  The  Reporter  preserved  all 
these  years. 


302  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

"THE  SALT  LAKE  DAILY  REPORTER. 

FRIDAY  EVEXESG,    OCTOBER  0,    1868. 
TIIE  ISSUE  JOIXED.        '.* 

"  There  is  a  commotion  in  Zion.  The  faithful  of  the  Lord  have 
gathered  once  more  in  the  city  of  the  Saints  to  moralize  upon  the 
uncertainties  of  Utah  life,  to  adore  his  holiness,  the  ancient  and  favored 
Brigham,  and  to  hurl  defiance  and  hatred  in  the  teeth  of  the  few 
remaining  Gentiles  who  have  for  many  years  withstood  the  storm  of 
Mormon  wrath  and  persecution  and  anchored  here  beneath  the  shadow 
of  Great  Brigham's  throne,  amid  the  glare  of  the  flaming  torches  of  his^ 
Angels  of  Peace  ({')  to  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  their  way  and  enjoy 
*  the  bitter  little  that  of  life  remains.'  All  hail  the  peaceful  reign  of 
a  harmonious  and  loving  master !  When  the  king  speaks  let  all  Mor- 
mondom  be  silent!  Hearken  unto  the  sayings  of  this  'Prince  of 
Peace,'  oh,  ye  Gentiles,  through  his  chosen  orator,  for  in  them  there  is 
much  food  for  meditation,  and  much  to  be  garnered  up  for  the  da}'  of 
wrath  which  is  to  dawn. 

"  Ye  have  grown  fat  upon  the  proceeds  of  your  labor,  and  it  is 
unseemly  in  the  eves  of  the  faithful  unto  whom  much  fatness  doth  not 
adhere — save  unto  the  few  who  b}'^  reason  of  much  labor  in  tithes 
gathering,  have  become  like  unto  their  well-fed  Gentile  brethren. 

"  Ye  have  built  houses  of  granite  in  their  midst,  and  storehouses  of 
much  space  and  strength,  and  have  filled  them  with  many  goods,  rich 
in  pattern  and  fine  of  texture  and  enduring  the  wearers  thereof.  A 
sainted  brother  who  entered  in  among  ye  being  dazzled  by  the  splendor 
of  your  array,  and  his  appetite  sharpened  by  the  overpowering  sense 
of  the  *  goodness  of  the  goods '  for  the  inner  man.  fain  would  not 
depart  until  he  had  laid  by  with  you,  instead  of  his  Mormon  brother.the 
dollars  and  cents  earned  by  his  own  industry,  but  which  should  have 
gone  to  enrich  his  brother's  coffers —  regardless  of  the  quid  pro  quo. 

'*  Ye  have  built  a  church  in  their  midst,  establishetl  a  religion 
ordained  in  the  faith  of  your  fathers,  created  schools  for  the  instruction 
of  the  young  of  all  creeds  and  gathered  into  your  fold  some  of  the 
innocent  offspring  of  your  Mormon  brethren* 

"  And,  oh,  horror  of  horrors!  The  most  atrocious  crime  of  all  crimes 
against  reason,  justice  and  the  immortal  principles  of  truth,  against 
the  advancing  interests  of  this  age  of  progress  and  enlightenment,  and  all 
the  sublime  doctrines  of  progression  in  learning  and  refinement  culti- 
vation and  information,  ye  have  established  anewspaj^er  in  their  midst, 
which  comports  not  in  character  with  their  chosen  organs,  but  which 
is  the  advocate  of  equality  and  liberty  on  American  soil  wherever  the 
flag  may  float  to  venerate  the  cherished  ideas  of  peace  and  union  to 
those  who,  amid  the  blaze  of  battle  and  the  red  cloud  of  war,  fought 
beneath  its  glorious  folds  and  bear  the  hc^iorable  scars  of  blood  v  bat- 
tle, which  is  also  the  advocate  of  free  competition  in  the  markets  of 


\ 

ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  303 

the  States  and  Territories  —  in  the  trades  and  professions  of  mankind, 
in  the  accelerating  influences  that  operate  in  the  great  workshops  of 
civilization,  and  the  reorganizing  principles  of  individual  and  coopera- 
tive action,  that,  as  they  are  exercised  for  the  weal  or  woe  of  mankind, 
make  the  scales  of  freedom  go  up  and  down. 

'•Xow  hearken  ye  unto  the  sayings  of  the  Prophet  of  the  Lord,  in 
these  latter  days,  and  his  faithful  coadjutors.  This  Gentile  prosperity 
and  progression  in  the  midst  of  the  land,  in  full  view  of  the  faithful 
and  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  throne,  must  cease  at  once.  It  can  no 
longer  be  tolerated  in  Israel.  The  fiat  has  gone  forth,  and  these  works 
of  labor  and  of  love  must  come  to  an  untimely  end — be  like  mile- 
stones on  a  deserted  road,  or  like  the  ruins  of  Palmyra  or  ancient 
Greece.  Even  nature  must  cease  her  development,  or  move  in  crooked 
wayward  lines.  No  longer  does  a  common  origin  and  common  man- 
hood bind  the  human  race.  Xo  longer  can  the  eternal  principles  of 
light  and  life  and  truth  and  reason  sway  the  minds  of  men  and  govern 
their  daily  actions.  They  are  all  to  be  obliterated  as  '  footprints  on 
the  sands  of  time.'  Faithful  coadjutors  and  favorable  combinations  of 
circumstances,  and  strength  of  martial  squad,  sometimes  are  great 
auxiliaries  to  successful  results,  but  in  this  case  the  Prophet  of  these 
latter  days  will  do  the  work  unaided  and  scatter  the  Gentile  hosts  unto 
the  corners  of  the  earth  as  by  mighty  winds  from  -^olian  caves. 
Standing  within  the  Tabernacle  of  sounding  proportions,  or  on  Ensign 
Peak,  of  immortal  fame,  or  beneath  the  crested  heights  of  rugged 
Wahsatch,  where  the  gates  of  the  east  ope  in  the  winding  road,  where 
many  a  pilgrim  foot  has  trod  and  many  a  longing  eye  been  cast,  stand- 
ing in  the  might  and  power  of  his  own  gigantic  strength,  like  the 
shrouded  Junius,  he  will  dare  all  to  combat — king,  lords  and  com- 
moners— but,  unlike  that  terrible  shadow,  he  will  fight  in  the  open  lists, 
defying  God,  man  and  the  devil,  the  United  States  Government,  the 
whole  Yankee  race,  whole  fleets  of  iron  and  whole  armies  of  blood- 
dyed  veterans. 

"  But,  first  of  aU,  a  more  pacific  policy  must  prevail.  Ends  may  be 
attained  without  all  this  display  of  individual  prowess  and  martial  skill 
and  fervor.  Logic,  inexorable  logic,  may,  after  all,  be  the  charm  which 
wiU  drive  away  the  pain  that  a  Gentile  presence  produces.  Let  the 
reasoning  be  made  known.  The  Gentile  element  is  weak  in  the  midst 
of  the  faithful,  although  their  labor  and  industry  has  made  them  pros- 
perous and  wealthy.  In  the  light  of  the  nineteenth  century  and  the 
advancing  railroad  it  will  not  do  to  murder  them  at  one  fell  blow  as 
were  some  of  their  kith  and  kin  in  earlier  days,  although  it  would 
delight  the  facetious  souls  of  many  of  the  faithful  to  behold  a  few 
dangling  from  telegraph  poles  and  their  homes  pillaged  and  their  busi- 
ness places  '  gutted,'  yet  the  more  merciful  plan  of  starvation  can  be 
adopted  to  accomplish  the  desired  result.     I^ow  the  Gentile  element 


304  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

being  weak  in  our  midst,  and  the  Saints  being  strong  in  numl>ers  and 
faithful  in  disposition,  they  will  be  crushed  and  starved  out  of  our 
midst,  and  out  of  existence  bv  non-intercourse*  on  the  part  of  the  faith- 
ful, and  mighty  proscriptions  on  the  psuct  of  the  magnates.  Therefore, 
this  proclamation  shall  issue — '  that  henceforth  and  forever  in  Zion  it 
shall  be  unlawful  for  a  Saint  to  enter  the  domicile  or  storehouse  of  a 
loathsome  Gentile,  or  purchase  from  him  any  article  that  he  may  offer 
for  sale,  no  matter  at  what  low  price  it  may  be  sold,  or  to  sell  or 
trade  to  any  of  the  aforesaid  race  any  article  that  a  Saint  may  have  for 
disposal,  no  matter  at  what  high  figure  it  may  be  sold,  or  to  give,  grant 
or  present  even  in  the  name  of  charity  anything  that  a  Saint  may  \x>s- 
sess,  not  excepting  an  article  of  food,  to  a  Gentile,  tho'  he  be  sorely 
pressed  by  hunger;  for  they  are  '  vipers  in  the  midst  of  the  faithfuL' 
And  the  penalty  of  any  violation  or  infraction  of  the  commands  thus 
issued,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  shall  be  met  by  the  severest  punish- 
ment, even  to  the  excommunication  of  the  offender  and  confiscation 
unto  the  church  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  'the  goods  and  chattels  and 
earthly  possessions  of  each  and  every  offender/  This,  then  is  the 
issued  joined.  This,  then,  is  the  doctrine  that,  henceforth,  is  to  govern 
aU  Zion  in  its  dealings  with  the  '  vipers  in  their  midst.'  Oh,  brave 
and  generous  race  I  Oh,  noble  and  exalted  manhood  I  Oh,  glorious 
and  triumphant  religion,  that  teaches  such  doctrines  of  jieace  and  good 
will  to  men  !     Worthy  followers  of  the  '  Prince  of  Peace  I ' 

"  But  just  here  we  have  a  word  to  say  for  the  benefit  of  our  Mormon 
brethren.  If  they  have  sounded  their  bugle-blast  of  war  and  proscrip- 
tion against  the  non-Mormon  element  of  this  Territory  in  dead  earnest, 
if  it  be  not  an  empty  threat  to  cover  some  unpleasant  matters  that  have 
arisen  in  the  mind  of  the  ruler  of  the  faithful,  then  we  accept  the  issue, 
and  will  endeavor  to  meet  it  as  becomes  men  who  have  known  what  it  is 
to  suffer  in  the  fires  of  persecution  for  the  sake  of  great  principles,  and 
have  come  forth  from  its  flames  with  the  {x>wers  of  manhood  strength- 
ened and  reinvigorated.  We  have  not  courtetl  this  proscription,  but 
have  wished  to  live  in  peace  with  all  men.  But  in  this  issue  we  do  not 
fear  the  result.  Idle  threats  may  be  made  about  hanging  us  to  tele- 
graph poles,  and  '  gutting'  our  offices  and  pillaging  our  houses,  but  we 
care  no  more  for  them  than  an  echo  of  the  winds.  We  are  not  to  be 
driven  from  here  by  such  threats.  This  is  our  jxjst,  and  here  we  shall 
remain  and  labor  until  light  shall  dawn  on  this  misguided  people.  The 
United  States  Government  will  no  longer  stand  supinely  by  and  see  its 
citizens  murdered  in  cold  blood  without  bringing  the  fiends  to  justice. 
That  dark  day  of  horrors,  when  honest  men  feared  their  lives,  has,  in 
the  mutabihty  of  men  and  things,  passed  away.  Assassination  will  no 
longer  be  tolerated  by  a  free  people,  and  if  this  be  attempted,  the  result 
will  be  that  the  temple  of  Mormon  violence  will  fall  around  them.  We 
say,  injury  and  violence  must  cease,  or  the  United  States  Government 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  305 

•will  enforce  its  laws  and  protect  its  citizens  here  as  elsewhere,  in  their 
lawful  pursuits  and  enjoyment  of  life,  liberty  and  prosperity.  We 
shall  continue  as  good  citizens  quietly  to  pursue  the  tenor  of  our  way, 
regardless  of  their  animadversions.  Our  churches  and  schools  shall 
remain  and  flourish  like  the  green  bay  tree,  open  unto  all.  Our  stores 
and  places  of  business  will  continue  to  thrive  by  the  inexorable  laws  of 
trade,  over  which  His  Holiness  has  no  control.  They  shall  be  open 
unto  all,  and  no  man  shall  go  aAvay  empty-handed.  As  for  our  neAvs- 
papers,  it  is  not  necessary  for  us  to  say  much.  In  the  future,  as  in  the 
past,  they  shall  be  the  beacon  lights  on  those  walls  of '  Zion,'  to  point  out 
the  way  to  peace  and  security.  Secure  in  the  strength  of  conscious 
right  and  imbued  with  lofty  purposes  of  doing  good  unto  all  men,  ever 
denouncing  the  wrong  and  championing  the  right,  fearing  no  man  or 
class  of  men,  and  regardless  of  threats  of  being  hung  to  lamp  posts  or 
telegraph  poles,  we  w^ill  ever  be  found  at  our  post,  advocating  our  views 
as  best  we  can,  and  exercising  the  rights  of  American  citizens  guar- 
anteed to  us  by  our  Government,  which  has  declared  that  it  will  protect 
each  and  every  citizen  who  plants  himself  beneath  the  folds  of  its  flag 
and  demands  that  protection,  accorded  by  all  governments  against 
internecine  as  well  as  foreign  foes." 

The  conference  remained  in  session  several  days,  but  the  Mormon 
leaders,  while  still  haranguing  their  followers  concerning  the  atrocious 
designs  of  the  infidel  Gentile,  no  longer  called  upon  them  to  revenge 
the  ncAvspaper  assaults  upon  their  integrity  as  a  church,  and  the  peculiar 
form  of  their  religion. 

A  strong  party  of  the  editor's  friends  quietly  guarded  his  office 
and  property,  and,  thoroughly  armed,  could,  from  the  peculiar  structure 
of  the  passage  way,  leading  to  his  rooms  on  the  second  floor  of  the 
building  over  the  First  National  Bank,  have  preserved  it  from  an 
attack  of  a  much  stronger  force.  Although  this  fact  was  known  as 
well  as  other  measures  of  preservation  which  had  been  taken,  still  I 
have  always  believed  that  the  sudden  change  of  front  of  the  Mormon 
leaders  was  not  so  much  due  to  this  action,  or  anything  contained  in 
the  editorials  of  the  paper,  as  to  the  decided  action-  of  the  commander 
of  Camp  Douglas,  who  privately  conveyed  to  Brigham  Young  the  fact 
that  he  Avould  hold  him  personally  responsible  for  the  lives  and 
property  of  the  Gentile  element,  which  he  so  strongly  condemned  in 
his  excited  speeches. 

When  the  Mormons  left  Kauvoo  and  crossed  the  Missouri  River,  it 
was  their  intention  to  travel  as  far  west  as  would  take  them  beyond 


306  ECHOES    FK0J4    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States  Government.  It  is  believed  by 
many,  and  has,  in  fact,  been  asserted  by  Mormon  authorit\',  that  their 
first  objective  point  was  California.  But  upon  reaching  the  valley  of 
Salt  Lake,  the  location  and  surroundings,  as  well  as  the  landscape,  so 
impressed  the  Prophet,  that  he  conclud»id  to  drive  his  "  stake  "  in  the 
beautiful  basin  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake,  Avhere  the  eternal  mountains 
would  keep  watch  and  ward  over  "the  chosen  people  of  God."  And 
so  the  "  vision  "  came  to  the  Prophet,  and  by  the  "  Lord's  command  " 
were  here  laid  the  foundations  of  Zion  City. 

"When  the  Mormons  arrived  in  the  valley  in  July,  1S47,  the  Terri- 
tory belonged  to  Mexico,  but  by  the  treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo  in 
March,  1848,  it  became,  together  with  New  Mexico,  Arizona  and  the 
whole  of  Upper  California,  a  portion  of  the  domain  of  the  United 
States.     This  was  a  sore  blow  to  the  designs  of  the  Prophet. 

With  the  Mexican  Government,  in  his  remote  fastnesses,  he  could 
dictate  his  own  terms  and  secure  for  himself  and  followers  all  the  con- 
cessions necessary  for  their  temporal  as  well  as  their  peculiar  spiritual 
welfare.  Here  they  could  revel  in  polygamy  and  indulge  in  all  the 
doctrines  declared  to  be  a  part  of  their  faith,  however  repulsive  to  tlie 
Christian  sentiment,  without  fear  of  death  and  molestation.  But  sud- 
denly the  war  with  Mexico  closed,  and,  as  if  to  controvert  their  schemes 
in  this  remote  section,  the  territory  on  which  they  had  already  begun 
the  erection  of  their  Temple,  became  the  property  of  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment. Still,  not  to  be  daunted  in  his  original  enterprise,  the 
Prophet  laid  claim  to  everything.  Under  a  system  of  law  enacted  by 
themselves  in  the  absence  of  Federal  legislation  and  the  persons  and 
powers  to  enforce  it,  all  this  basin  and  nearly  every  arable  acre  of 
soil  in  the  Territory  was  seized  and  apportioned  to  their  own  uses. 
Sparse  and  distant  settlements  were  erected  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
maintaining  their  hold  upon  the  lands  they  had  taken  possession  of, 
and  the  authority  of  the  church  through  its  great  high  priest  was 
extended  in  all  directions.  Xot  an  acre  of  the  land  should  ever  be  in 
such  condition  as  to  be  converted  to  the  use  or  benefit  of  the  Gentile 
element.  All  that  would  tend  in  the  way  of  business  to  attract  them 
to  their  midst  should  be  discarded.  Under  the  operations  of  this  rule, 
mining  for  the  precious  metals  was  prohibited  under  the  penalty  of  the 
■'  anger  of  God."  Brigham  declared  publicly  that  none  of  the  vast 
mineral  wealth  of  the  Territory  should  be  disclosed  until  "the  Lord" 

so 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  307 

through  liim  as  His  vicar  should  so  determine.  "While  great  wealth 
lay  at  their  doors  and  a  mighty  industry  might  have  been  thus  estab- 
lished, they  were  not  permitted  to  turn  a  spadeful  of  earth  save  in  the 
way  of  cultivating  the  soil.  These  mines  of  gold  and  silver  were  to 
be  kept  as  a  secret  from  the  outer  world  to  prevent  an  accretion  of 
Gentile  population.  They  Ayere  sealed  within  themselves  in  their 
mountain  walls,  and  the  Gentile  was  almost  an  absolute  stranger 
within  their  gates  until  the  advent  of  Johnston's  army.  Along  with 
that  came  the  mail  and  the  express,  and  the  telegraph  followed,  and 
sutlers'  goods  and  Gentile  stores  made  their  entry  in  the  wake  of  the 
army.  Not  until  General  Conner  came  with  his  California  regiment 
of  miners  and  mountain  prospectors  was  the  knowledge  of  Utah's  vast 
mineral  wealth  made  known  to  the  world.  Then  followed  a  greater 
influx  of  the  Gentile  element.  Still,  Brigham  Young,  as  the  high 
priest  of  the  church,  continued  his  absolute  sway  over  his  people,  con- 
trolling and  directing  every  movement  of  their  life,  in  all  their  social, 
religious  and  business  relations.  No  man  or  woman  dared  to  assert  an 
opinion  differing  with  that  of  the  head  of  the  church.  The  govern- 
ment was  a  pure  theocracy,  controlled  by  the  will  of  one  man,  in 
theory  and  for  the  most  part  in  practice  still  remains.  All  elections  in 
Utah  were  supervised  by  the  heads  of  the  church.  Each  candidate 
was  selected  and  the  faithful  instructed  to  vote  for  him  and  the  cast- 
ing of  the  ballot  afterward  involved  no  operations  of  the  mind  or 
judgment.  It  was  merely  a  mechanical  act  dictated  by  the  chief  the 
priesthood. 

When  I  was  present  in  the  valley,  Brigham  Young  was  the  high 
priest  who  governed  all  elections.  On  one  occasion,  during  an  election 
for  city  officers,  the  name  of  a  nephew  of  the  President  appeared  on  the 
the  ticket  as  a  candidate  for  the  board  of  aldermen.  The  liberal  Mor- 
mons, aided  by  a  strong  Gentile  vote,  supported  Bishop  Wooley,  of  the 
Eleventh  AYard  in  opposition,  and  triumphantly  elected  him.  Scratching 
of  the  ticket  prepared  by  Brigham  Young  was  hitherto  unknown.  It  was 
the  first  break  for  liberty.  Brigham  on  that  day  was  absent  from  Salt 
Lake,  on  a  visit  "to  Provo.  Immediately  on  his  return  he  was  made 
acquainted  with  this  action  on  the  part  of  the  faithful  which  had  been 
permitted  by  Mayor  Wells  and  the  apostle,  George  Q.  Cannon,  who  had 
charge  of  the  election.  He  at  once  summoned  them  and  all  others  con- 
nectedwith  this  terrible  breach  of  church  discipline  before  him.  He  was 


3U8  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

as  well  nigh  insane  with  rage.  The  ''  school  of  the  prophets"  was  before 
him  with  these  culprits  in  charge.  He  raved,  in  paroxysms  of  wrath 
against  those  who,  as  leaders,  had  betrayed  theirtrust.  In  liis  mad  fury 
he  stormed  and  cursed  and  called  down  upon  them  the  wrath  of  the 
Almighty,  and  declared  unto  them  that  the  "anger  of  the  Lord"'  was 
kindled  against  them  for  "  scratching  the  ticket  I "  The  "erring  brethren" 
at  once  Aveakened.  The  Apostle  was  reduced  to  tears.  The  Mayor 
acknowledged  that  the  shaft  of  the  "  Lord's  anger  "  had  pierced  him 
through  the  lightning  of  Brigham's  eye,  and  the  innocent  cause  of  all 
this  commotion,  Bishop  Woolej^,  who  had  likewise  felt  the  weight  of 
Brigham's  anger,  if  not  that  of  the  "Lord's,"  restored  peace  and  harmony 
by  immediately  resigning  the  office  to  which  he  had  been  overwhelm- 
ingly elected. 

Bishop  Woole}',  bishop  of  the  Eleventh  Ward,  was  a  man  of 
strongh'^  marked  character.  He  was  held  by  the  Mormons  in  high 
esteem  for  the  vigorous  manner  in  which  he  ruled  over  his  relisrious 
domain.  On  the  other  hand  there  was  an  electric  chord  of  sympathy 
running  between  the  Bishop  and  the  Gentile  element  who,  for  some 
unexplained  reason,  regardetlthe  Bishop  as  the  only  friend  inside  of  the 
church  they  ]X)ssessed.  There  was  always  a  kind  of  frank  cordiality 
existing  between  them.  He  always  met  them  on  the  street  with  a 
kindly  greeting,  invited  them  to  his  "  Sunda}^  evening  services  "  in  the 
ward  chapel,  teUing  them  to  come  early  and  get  a  front  seat  and  get  a 
warm  greeting.  And  the  good  Bishop  never  failed  to  give  us  Gentiles 
a  wai'm  greeting  when  we  turned  out  in  force.  The  more  the  merrier 
for  him,  and  the  tongue-lashing  we  would  receive,  and  the  rip-tearing 
abuse  of  the  Gentile  element  we  would  listen  to  in  a  single  discourse 
of  an  hour's  duration,  was  a  due  caution  to  all  thin-skinnetl  unbelievers. 
But  the  manner  of  its  delivery,  the  homely  illustrations,  the  funny 
stories  and  the  ludicrous  comparisons  which  convulsed  our  natures  with 
such  laughter  as  shook  the  beams  and  rafters  overhead,  and  made  the 
welkin  ring  with  our  storms  of  applause  from  both  mouth  and  heel,  as 
we  cheered  his  sentiments  to  the  echo  I  Oh,  how  he  talked  to  the 
susceptible  young  girls  of  his  flock,  and  bade  them  beware  of  the  subtle 
and  all-powerful  and  designing  influence  of  the  gay  young  Gentiles 
who  had  floated  into  their  midst  to  captivate  their  women !  I  wish  I 
could  here  relate  his  "  whitewash"  and  "ice  cream"  stories ;  but  I  can 
not,  for  fear  some  spinster,  not  penetrating  our  design,  nor  being  able 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    llOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  309 

to  penetrate  his,  may  place  a  false  estimate  upon  the  "  good  morals  " 
we  propose  to  teach  in  this  work.  But  the  good  Bishop  was  always 
powerful  on  comparison  and  illustration,  and,  like  President  Lincoln, 
was  never  wanting  for  a  story  "with  meat  in  it"  for  an  explanation. 
The  young  men  of  the  Gentile  element,  who  were  constant  attendants 
upon  this  "  Sunday  evening  service  "  were  wont  to  say  :  "  It  is  better 
than  a  circus  !  "  and  as  the  theater  was  closed  always  on  the  Lord's 
day,  they  obtained  their  Sunday's  amusement  from  the  discourses  of  the 
good  Bishop  and  the  covert  smiles  of  the  young  sisters  of  the  church 
who  were  disposed  to  look  kindly  upon  the  attentions  of  their  hand- 
some, well-dressed  admirers.  And  the  Gentiles  were  always  ready  to 
pay  well  for  their  entertainment,  and  the  shrewd  Bishop  soon  learned 
this  fact  and  improved  upon  it.  The  ''  church  exchange"  of  the  pro- 
ductions of  the  soil  was  a  very  good  thing  in  its  way,  and  a  contribu- 
tion of  cereals  and  "  garden  stuff "  for  the  support  of  the  Bishop's 
ministrations  were  not  to  be  despised.  Still,  a  little  ready  cash  to 
meet  sudden  and  pressing  emergencies,  was  all  important,  and  when- 
ever needed  the  Bishop  knew  how  to  get  it.  The  beets,  onions  and 
turnips  came  from  the  Mormons,  but  the  shining  silver  and  gold  and 
the  crisp  notes  were  the  generous  offerings  of  the  Gentile  portion  of 
his  congregation,  and  when,  after  a  more  than  usual  "powerful" 
discourse  and  happy  "illustration,"  the  "hat"  was  passed  around,  it 
would  make  the  eloquent  Bishop's  eyes  sparkle  with  delight  to  notice 
the  popularity  of  his  remarks  in  the  large  returns  from  the  Gentile 
"  brethren." 

And  thus  it  went  on,  the  "  warm  Sunday  evening  discourses  "  and 
the  kindly  w^eekday  greetings,  until  we  all  came  to  love  and  venerate 
the  good  Bishop,  and  when  it  was  announced  secretly  to  us  that  the 
Bishop  would  be  the  "  liberal  candidate "  against  that  of  Brigham's 
"  People's  ticket,"  we  all  gathered  at  the  polls  and  triumphantly  elected 
Bishop  John  Wooley  an  alderman  of  the  city  of  Salt  Lake. 

I  know  not  whether  he  is  yet  upon  the  earth's  plane,  preaching 
the  gospel  of  the  Saints,  or  whether  he  has  been  "gathered  to  his 
fathers',  but  wherever  he  may  be,  I  know  it  is  the  prayer  of  his  Gen- 
tile friends  of  the  earher  days  of  the  valley,  that  the  sun  of  love  and 
righteousness  may  follow  him.  Farewell,  good  Bishop  Wooley,  twenty 
years  of  absence  have  not  dimmed  our  memory  nor  weakened  our  ven- 
eration.     We  trust  that  you  may  still  be  "  like  a  tree  planted  by  a 


310  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

river  of  waters,  whose  branches  do  not  wither  nor  leaves  fade  away! " 
This  may  not  be  exact  Scripture,  yet  it  is  our  prayer. 

The  outside  world  may  wonder  why  we  took  our  punishment  with 
such  glee.  Ours  was  nothing  compared  to  what  the  others  received. 
Our  case  was  much  like  that  of  the  anxious  mother  who  exclaimed 
"my  poor  boy,"  while  she  unwound  the  bandages  wrapped  around  his 
skinned  and  bleeding  knuckles,  "  how  did  you  ever  come  to  do  it  ? 
"What  an  awful-looking  hand  I  If  conflagration  or  eerlisipitum  should 
set  in,  what  would  become  of  you  ? "  The  |XK)r  boy  didn't  seem  to  take 
a  very  ready  grip  on  the  problem,  but  his  face  lit  up  with  a  smile  of 
savage  satisfaction  as  he  observed  :  "  If  you  think  that  awful,  mother, 
you  ousjht  to  see  BOl  Stebbin's  nose." 


OHAPTEE  XXI 

THE  MORMON  RELIGION  — TENETS  OF  THE  MORMON  FAITH  — THE  POWER  OF  BRIG- 
HAM  YOUNG,  THEIR  SEER  — HIS  "COMMUNION  WITH  GOD"— THE  BLOOD 
ATONEMENT  — THE  MURDER  OF  A  WIFE  BY  HER  HUSBAND  — THE  ORDER  OF 
ENOCH -BRIGHAM'S  GREAT  WEALTH  -  GEORGE  PEABODY'S  STATEMENT  OF 
HIS  DEPOSITS  IN  THE  BANK  OF  ENGLAND. 

So  much  has  been  said  and  written  by  numerous  able  writers  upon 
the  tenets  of  the  Mormon  religion  that  it  is  wholly  unnecessar}'^  for  me 
to  make  more  than  a  passing  allusion.  In  fact,  the  character  of  the 
work  before  me  forbids  it.  It  is,  therefore,  not  my  purpose  to  dwell 
upon  the  peculiarities  of  their  strange  faith.  During  my  residence  of 
several  years  in  the  capital  city  of  the  Territory,  and  my  repeated  and 
extensive  travels  through  all  parts  of  Utah,  I  became,  by  observation, 
inquiry  and  research,  intimately  acquainted  with  the  religious  life  of 
the  people,  and  with  many  of  the  forms  of  their  faith.  I  propose,  in 
the  present  chapter,  to  give  to  the  public  such  part  of  those  forms  and 
ceremonies  as  are  usually  supposed  to  be  so  closely  guarded  by  oaths 
and  censorship  as  never  to  be  revealed  to  the  curious  and  eager  gaze  of 
the  public  eye.  And  had  it  not  have  been  for  the  revelations  made  by 
one  of  their  number,  a  lady  of  undoubted  reputation  and  long  a  faithful 
member  of  their  flock,  who,  having  passed  through  the  ordeal,  of  the 
Endowment  House,  and  afterward,  for  good  and  sufficient  cause,  sep- 
arated herself  from  that  faith,  and,  instigated  by  the  belief  of  doing 
good  to  mankind  by  exposing  the  strange  rites  and  ceremonies  of  such 
part  of  their  religious  forms  as  pertain  to  the  "  Endowment  House," 
that  part  of  their  religious  ceremonies  might  never  have  been  known. 

The  question  is  often  asked,  "  What  is  the  '  Book  of  Mormon  ? ' " 
The  Book  of  Mormon  claims  to  be  the  sacred  history  of  ancient 
America,  written  by  a  line  of  ancient  prophets,  who  dwelt  upon  our 
vast  continent.  The  golden  plates,  held  by  the  Mormons  to  contain 
this  history,  were  said  to  have  been  first  discovered  by  Joseph  Smith,  a 
young  man  of  upright  character,  who  claimed  that  he  w^as  directed  by 
angels  to  the  spot  where  lay  for  so  many  ages  hidden  from  human  eye 
the  wonderful  revelations.     Each  of  these  plates  of  gold  was  about 

311 


...J  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

eight  inches  square  and  of  the  thickness  of  tin  in  common  use.  Both 
sides  of  the  plates  were  filled  with  engraved  Egyptian  characters, 
bound  together  in  a  volume,  possessing  the  appearance  of  leaves  in  a 
book,  and  fastened  at  one  edge  with  three  rings  running  through  all  of 
them,  forming  a  volume  nearh',  if  not  quite,  six  inches  thick,  a  part 
of  which  was  sealed.  All  the  characters  upon  the  unsealed  part  were 
diminutive,  and  beautifully  engraved.  With  these  plates  were  like- 
wise found  the  UHm  and  TJtummin,  by  means  of  which,  and  under 
the  direction  of  the  Lord,  and  by  His  assistance,  it  is  claimed,  Joseph 
Smith  was  enabled  to  translate  this  ancient  record  into  the  English 
language,  and,  under  the  inspiration  of  God,  to  found  the  Mormon 
faith. 

The  public  is  familiar  with  the  subsequent  history  of  the  founder 
and  followers  of  his  faith.  Their  wanderings,  hardships,  reverses  of 
fortune,  destruction  of  property,  imprisonment  and  murder  of  their 
Prophet,  the  accession  and  deposition  of  Sidney  Rigdon  as  the  head  of 
the  church,  the  elevation  of  Brigham  Toung  as  their  high  priest  and 
president,  their  long  and  perilous  journey  across  the  desert  wastes  of 
America,  and  their  final  settlement  in  the  valley  of  the  Great  Salt 
Lake.  Xo  man  of  the  present  century  has  attracted  more  notice  from 
writers  of  all  creeds  both  at  home  and  abroad  than  Brigham  Young, 
and  none  in  so  limited  a  sphere  has  performed  a  more  important  part 
upon  the  world's  stage  of  action.  He  was  born  of  humble  parentage 
in  Windham  county,  Vermont,  June  1st,  ISOl.  His  education  in  the 
schools  was  limited,  according  to  his  own  statement,  to  eleven  and  a 
half  days.  He  learned  in  early  life  the  trade  of  a  painter  and  glazier. 
He  joined  the  Mormon  Church  on  the  14th  of  April,  1832,  and 
removed  to  Kirtland,  Ohio.  He  journeyed  with  them  to  Far  West, 
Missouri.  Driven  thence  he  followed  their  fortunes  to  Nauvoo, 
niinois,  and  thence  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  By  simple  force  of 
character  he  reached  the  highest  pinnacle  of  honor  in  the  Mormon 
Church.  It  was  tlirough  him  that  Bigdon  fell,  and  passing  by  the  elo- 
quence of  Parley  Pratt  and  the  learning  of  Orson  Pmtt,  the  spiritual 
meditations  and  Communions  of  Cowdery,  the  imagery  of  Hyde,  and 
the  hopes  of  George  A.  Smith,  upon  hira  fell,  as  a  lightning  bolt  from 
heaven,  "  the  gift  of  tongues,"  and  he  bore  testimony  that  '•  the  Lord  '' 
had  raised  up  in  himself  a  prophet  who  should  be  the  leader  of  the 
saints  of  the  latter  day. 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  313 

He  was  not  only  a  man  of  great  force  of  character,  but  one  pos- 
sessed of  great  executive  ability.  To  his  clear  judgment,  firmness  of 
decision,  inflexible  will,  unceasing  industry,  power  of  government  and 
control  of  men,  directness  of  purpose  and  a  self-sustaining  individuality 
that  overrode  all  opposition,  the  Mormon  Church  owes  all  the  pros- 
perity that  attended  its  lodgment  in  the  sterile  valleys  of  the  mount- 
ains. Had  it  not  been  for  him  and  his  strength  of  command,  the 
multitude  of  his  followers  would  have  fled  before  the  disasters  and 
threatened  starvation  that  assailed  them  in  the  early  days  of  their  entry 
into  the  valley. 

While  he  directed  their  spiritual  faith  and  by  "  visions"  and 
"  dreams  "  pointed  out  the  will  of  "the  Lord,"  he  superintended  all 
the  great  labor  of  laying  out  and  building  the  city  of  Zion.  All  plans 
were  submitted  first  to  his  inspection  before  a  "stake"  was  driven. 
Under  his  supervision  and  especial  direction  the  Tabernacle  and  all 
public  buildings  were  erected,  and  the  eternal  foundations  of  the 
Temple  laid.  And  when,  in  after  years,  privations  ceased,  and  the 
city  had  grown  great  and  prosperous,  and  Mormon  emigrants  poured 
through  the  mountain  defiles  from  all  parts  of  the  earth,  personally  he 
superintended  their  movements,  and  established  the  various  settlements 
throughout  the  Territory.  When  the  lines  of  telegraph  Avere  laid,  it 
was  by  Brigham's  contract  with  the  company,  sublet  to  others.  When 
the  roads  were  built  for  the  mail  and  express  companies,  it  was  by 
Brigham's  order;  and  when  the  great  transcontinental  railroad  reached 
the  mountain  walls  of  his  territorial  domain,  its  iron  horse  w\is  led 
through  his  gate  by  the  gloved  hand  of  the  Prophet.  In  all  things 
pertaining  to  the  church,  the  Mormon  people,  their  settlements,  their 
labors  and  rewards,  their  internal  commerce  or  their  relations  abroad  — 
in  fact  in  every  thing,  spiritual  or  temporal,  that  found  a  lodgment 
in  the  valley,  this  great  high  priest  w^as  chief  over  all.  As  the 
"mouthpiece  of  God,"  he  was  endowed  Avith  qualifications  that  leveled 
all  argument  and  spurned  contemptuously  all  advice  or  logic  that  leaned 
toward  views  other  than  his  own.  He  was  the  modern  Peter  within 
his  mountain  walls  who  held  by  "  God's  permission  "  the  keys  of  their 
soul's  salvation ;  and  not  more  perfectly  by  the  side  of  Kome's  historic 
stream,  amid  the  crumbling  ruins  of  her  ancient  Avails  and  temples  did 
the  heir  of  the  ancient  Peter  reign  over  the  spiritual  life  of  the  Romish 
Church  tlian  did  Brigham  Young  by  the  side  of  his  silvery  lake  over 


314  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

the  lives  and  fortunes  of  his  trusting  followers.  It  was  as  if  the  spirit 
of  prophecy,  whispering  over  the  ages,  had  trg^nslated  its  abode  from 
the  banks  of  the  Mediterranean  to  the  great  "  Dead  Sea  of  America." 

A  late  writer,  Stenhouse,  an  apostate  of  the  Mormon  faith,  speak- 
ing of  the  absolute  power  of  Brigham  over  the  lives  and  propertv  of  his 
people,  thus  remarks:  "Ko  one  to-day,  even  in  Utah,  can  form  any 
idea  of  the  thorough  control  that  Brigham  exercised  over  the  people. 
Xothing  was  ever  undertaken  without  his  permission — he  knew  of 
everything.  Xo  person  could  enter  into  business  without  consulting 
him,  nor  would  any  one  ever  think  of  leaving  the  city  to  reside  in  any 
other  part  of  the  country  without  having  his  approval.  Merchants 
who  went  East  or  West  to  purchase  goods  had  to  present  themselves  at 
his  office  and  report  their  intention  of  going  to  the  States  at  such  a 
time,  if  he  had  no  contrary  orders  to  give  them.  He  claimed  that  no 
Saint  should  do  anything  without  his  knowledge  and  approval.  That 
oft  reiterated  expression,  that  it  was  his  right  to  dictate  and  control 
everything,  'even  to  the  ribbons  that  a  woman  should  wear,  or  to  the 
settingupof  a  stocking,'  was  the  truthful  illustration  of  his  feelings.  A 
ball  could  not  take  place  until  the  dancing  and  the  names  of  the  invited 
were  presented,  to  be  erased  or  increased  at  his  will.  No  one  could 
marry  without  his  consent,  or  make  love  to  a  maiden,  if  married,  with 
a  view  of  making  her  his  second,  third  or  tenth  wife,  without  first 
consulting  him.  He  held  absolute  sway  over  their  temporal  affairs, 
and  ordered  them  from  place  to  place  at  his  own  will.  He  once  told 
the  ablest  Mormon  lawyer  in  Zion,  who  had  once  been  a  Federal  judge 
(Judge  Snow),  that  if  he  came  again  on  the  platform  where  he  stood, 
he  would  kick  him  off  and  he  appointed  him  to  a  mission  in  Yan 
Dieman's  Land,  and  told  him  nerer  to  return,  he  never  wanted  to  see 
him  there  again.  And  the  hiwyer  went,  performed  his  mission, 
returned  and  became  very  useful  to  Brigham." 

And  thus  he  was  "  master  of  all  Israel."  No  sovereign  of  the  Old 
World  ever  held  such  complete  swa\'^  over  his  subjects.  His  will  was 
the  supreme  law  of  his  domain,  and  none  dared  to  disobey.  No  wonder 
that  a  traveler  from  beyond  the  sea  halting  midway  on  the  continent  to 
view  the  foundations  of  this  modern  Zion  and  the  daily  life  of  this 
"  chosen  people  of  God  "  should  declare  them  as  one  '•  having  a  new 
law,  a  new  priesthood  and  a  new  God."  Brigham  Young  was.  the 
embodiment  of  all,  by  will  and  action,  form  and  ceremony.  His  move- 
ments Avere  all  "religious"  and  "mysterious." 


I 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MO  UJS  TAINS.  315 

By  "  visions,"  dreams  and  "  prophecies  '•  he  ruled  the  Mormon 
Church,  His  iron  rule  was  the  offspring  of  his  "  communion  with  the 
unseen  world."  His  followers  firmly  believed  his  declarations  that  he 
"  walked  wnth  angels  .and  talked  with  God."  All  the  innovations  upon 
and  departures  from  the  original  faith  as  taught  by  its  founder,  came 
through  the  voice  of  prophecy  and  the  command  of  the  "  Supreme 
Ruler."  Joe  Smith's  religion  gave  no  sanction  to  the  doctrine  of 
polygamy.  Brigham  Young  grafted  it  upon  the  bud  of  the  church  as 
of  divine  origin  and  by  special  command.  It  appealed  to  the  lower 
passions  of  men,  and  its  popularity  proved  a  bond  of  union  among  the 
modern  Saints.  It  left  its  sting  upon  the  hearthstone,  but  it  made  its 
impress  upon  the  social  fabric.  Joe  Smith's  religion  attempted  no 
inroads  upon  the  social  law  of  unity  and  entity  between  man  and 
wife ;  Brigham's  doctrine  of  "  ensealment  "  destroyed  'that  unity  and 
entity.  A  wife  of  a  living  elder  "  by  divine  command  "  could  at  the 
same  time  become  the  wife  of  a  living  apostle  for  spiritual  progression. 
Joe  Smith  never  taught  or  believed  the  revolting  doctrine  of  "  the 
blood  atonement."  Yet  Brigham  declared  it  part  of  the  faith,  and 
enjoined  it  upon  his  followers  as  of  divine  origin  and  command.  As 
taught  by  him  it  was  dark  and  peculiar.  It  was  murder  without  con- 
cealment. It  was  the  taking  of  a  human  life  under  such  spiritual  forms 
as  "  deified  "  the  victim.  It  was  the  occasion  of  rejoicing  that  an 
erring  soul  had  been  saved  by  the  bloody  sacrifice  throughout  eternity. 
All  the  rehgious  forms  were  strictly  observed.  After  death  their 
bodies  were  laid  out  *'  in  the  robes  of  the  priesthood  ; "  sermons  were 
preached  upon  their  lives  and  characters,  and  the  solemn  declaration 
made  by  their  teachers  and  slayers:  "  They  are  to  come  forth  in  the 
first  resurrection,  for  they  paid  the  atoning  penalty  through  blood  that 
flowed  down  upon  their  breasts,  even  as  the  oil  upon  Aaron's  beard, 
and  are  therefore  entitled  to  the  honors  of  the  immortalized  Saints ! " 

Once  a  "  plural "  wife  fell  during  the  absence  of  her  polygamous- 
husband  on  a  foreign  "  mission."  Under  the  barbarous  practice  of  this 
"  Eule  of  Reformation,"  as  taught  by  the  high  prjest  of  the  Mormon 
church,  she  beheld  the  way  of  her  soul's  salvation.  The  unhappy 
woman,  by  his  teachings,  conceived  the  belief  that  from  this  act  of 
unchastity  she  would  lose  her  claim  to  motherhood  over  the  children 
she  had  already  borne,  be  cast  aside  in  the  eternal  world  as  well  as 
in  this  by  her  husband,  and  never  be  able  to  reach  the  sublime  circle 


316  ECHOES    FEOM    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

of  the  gods  unless  she  made  the  blood  atonement.  On  the  return  of 
her  husband  she  imparted  to  him  the  secret  of  ker  error,  and  consented 
to  meet  the  penalty  of  her  unchaste  act.  And  while  her  heart  was 
overflowing  with  affection  for  him  and  her  children,  and  her  mind 
imbued  with  faith  in  the  horrible  doctrine  of  human  sacrifice,  she 
seated  herself  upon  her  husband's  knee  to  await  the  fulfillment  of  the 
deed  of  blood.  And  thus,  in  the  midst  of  the  most  endearing  embrace 
she  had  ever  known,  with  the  warm  kiss  of  caress  upon  her  glowing 
cheek,  this  "  Christian  "  monster  raised  his  own  right  hand  and  with 
the  keen  edge  of  a  shining  blade  severed  her  white  throat  from  ear  to 
ear.  Her  released  spirit  he  sent  with  a  prayer  into  the  keeping  of 
" guardian  angels "  until  the  morning  of  the  resurrection,  when  she 
would  rejoin  him  in  the  world  of  eternal  joy.  The  betrayer  went 
unharmed  and  the  "  loving  husband  "  continued  to  preach  in  his  happi- 
est mood  and  in  the  belief  that  he  had  performed  an  act  of  immortal- 
ization. 

To  aid  in  establishing  his  great  "  kingdom,"  Brigham  Young,  after 
the  death  of  Joseph  Smith,  introduced  as  a  part  of  their  creed  and 
worship  the  "  law  of  adoption.  "This  was,  indeed,  a  bold  and  shrewd 
movement  on  his  part,  calculated  to  establish  his  individual  greatness 
and  cement  his  hold  upon  everything  connected  with  the  church  and 
Mormon  pe(»ple. 

This  law  assumed  that  Joseph  Smith  was  appointed  and  ordained 
from  before  the  creation  of  the  world  to  be  tlie  head  and  ruler  of  the 
"Last  Dispensation."  Adam,  Xoah,  Abraham,  Moses,  Elijah,  and 
Jesus  had  each  their  place  in  the  world's  history  as  famous  men,  unto 
whom  special  dispensations,  had  been  granted  by  the  Supreme  Ruler. 
Unto  Joseph  Smith,  however,  was  accorded  the  "  Dispensation  of  the 
Fullness  of  Times,"  which,  by  bringing  into  harmony  the  labors  of  the 
prophets  and  apostles  of  all  ages,  should  be  the  crowning  work  of  the 
heavens  and  of  the  earth  combined.  Christ  said:  "!No  man  cometh  to 
the  Father  but  by  Me ! "  Brigham  Young  consecrated  himself  to  this 
declaration  as  the  modem  successor  of  Christ  in  the  line  of  the  ages. 
He  commanded  his  apostles  to  preach  this  doctrine  to  the  people ;  and 
everywhere  they  taught,  "that,  as  the  high  priest  of  the  church, 
Brigham  Young,  by  God's  permission,  holds  the  keys  of  life  and 
salvation  upon  the  earth,  and  not  one  will  ever  enter  through  the 
straight  gate  into  the  kingdom  of   God   save  through  him  and  his 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS,  317 

brethren.  The  word  of  our  leader  and  prophet  is  the  word  of  God  to 
this  people  We  can  not  see  God ;  we  can  not  converse  with  Him,  but 
He  has  given  us  a  man  we  can  talk  to,  and  thereby  know  his  will,  just 
as  well  as  if  God  Himself  were  present  with  us.  We  are  no  more  afraid 
to  risk  our  salvation  in  the  hands  of  this  man  than  we  are  to  trust  our- 
selves in  the  hands  of  the  Almighty.  He  will  lead  us  aright  if  we  do 
and  say  what  He  commands  in  every  particular  and  circumstance !" 
These  are  the  words  of  His  first  and  second  counselors  Heber  Kimball 
and  Josiah  Grant. 

But,  as  already  stated,  Brighara  Young's  control  over  his  people 
was  not  confined  to  the  spiritual  side  of  their  lives.  He  mingled  with 
it  all  matters  secular  that  in  any  measure  could  benefit  the  church  and 
its  priesthood.  Among  others  of  this  nature,  he  proclaimed  the  doc- 
trine of  '"consecration."  He  taught  them  that  "the  Lord"  required 
of  them  a  tithing  of  all  they  possessed,  and  after  the  exaction  of  that 
amount,  he  commanded  an  annual  contribution  of  one-tenth  of  all  their 
increase.  The  prompt  payment  of  these  demands  was  made  a  stern 
condition  of  the  exemplary  standing  of  the  Saint  in  the  Mormon  Church, 
and  the  failure  to  contribute  was  visited  by  the  wrath  of  the  high 
priest  upon  the  culprit.  But  the  greed  of  the  leader  did  not  cease 
with  these  demands.  He  saw  a  way  in  a  "  vision "  whereby  the 
wealth  of  the  church  should  be  made  permanent  and  secure.  He  would 
take  it  all  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  !  When,  therefore,  through  thrift 
and  frugality,  his  followers  became  possessed  of  wealth  in  lands  and 
improvements  and  all  other  forms  of  property,  they  were  graciously 
provided  with  another  means  of  higher  progress  and  development  in 
the  spiritual  world.  They  Avere  permitted  to  become  members  of  the 
"  Order  of  Enoch,"  and  consecrate  to  "  the  Lord  "  all  their  possessions. 
As  has  been  shown,  everything  that  is  done,  or  commanded  to  be  done, 
for  the  benefit  of  the  church  and  the  priesthood,  is  performed  in  the 
name  of  the  Supreme  Ruler  and  by  "  His  command."  Everything  is 
clothed  with  the  mystery  of  modern  revelation.  In  a '•' vision "  "the 
Lord  "  commanded  him  to  offer  his  people  this  means  of  lofty  spiritual 
progress,  by  transferring  to  Brigham  Young,  the  high  priest  of  the 
church  and  the  vicar  of  the  Almighty,  all  their  lands  and  tenements 
and  worldly  possessions  to  be  held  by  him  as  Trustee  in  trtist  of  the 
church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints.  And  thus  a  large  portion 
of  the  wealth  of  the  people,  the  result  of  their  toil  and  thrift,  passed 


318  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

by  the  perfect  forms  of  law,  into  the  possession  of  Brigham  Young. 
There  was  no  secrecy  about  the  transfer  of  the  property  of  these  ''  Sons 
of  Enoch."  Each  and  every  transfer  was  executed  by  deed  of  con- 
veyance, duly  attested  and  entered  upon  the  records  of  the  county  of 
Salt  Lake.  It  was  made  as  binding  as  the  forms  of  law  would  permit, 
and  the  following  is  a  transcript  of  such  a  conveyance  from  the  county 
records : 

JBC  It  known  bg  these  Presente,  That  I,  Jesse  W.  Fox,  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
City,  in  the  County  of  Great  Salt  Lake,  and  Territory  of  Utah,  for  and  in  considera- 
tion of  one  hundred  (100)  dollars,  and  the  good  will  which  I  have  to  the  Church  of 
Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints, 

Give  and  Convey  unto  Brigham  Young,  Trustee  in  trust  for  said  Church,  his 
successors  in  office  avnl  assigns^  all  my  claim  to  and  ownership  of  the  following 
described  property,  to-wit : 

One  house  and  lot,  being  lot  G,  block  60,  plat  C,  G.   S.  L. 

City,  value  thereof 1 1,000 

One  city  lot  as  platted  in  plat  E,  being  lot  2,  block  6,  value 

thereof 100 


East  1^  lot  1,  bl.  12,  5  acres,  plat  G.  S.  L.  Co 
Lot  1,  bl.  14,  Jordan  plat,  9  acres,  value 
Two  cows,  $50,  two  calves,  $15 
One  mare,  f  100,  one  colt  $50, 
One  watch,  $20,  one  clock,  $12. 
Clothing,  $300,  beds  and  bedding,  $125, 
One  stove,  $20,  household  furniture,  $210 


50 

75 

65 

150 

32 

425 

230 


$2,1^ 


Total  amount,    ...... 

— together  with  all  the  rights,  privileges  and  appurtenances  thereunto  belonging 
or  appertaining,  I  also  covenant  and  agree  that  I  am  the  lawful  claimant  and  owner 
of  said  property,  and  will  warrant  and  forever  defend  the  same  unto  the  said  Brig- 
ham Young,  Trustee  in  trust,  his  successors  in  office  and  assigns,  against  the  claims 
of  my  heirs,  assigns,  or  any  persons  whomsoever.  JESSE  W.  FOX. 

Witnesses  ^  ^^^^  ^IcEwax, 
witnesses  ^  j^^^.  ^^   Bollwixkle. 

Territory  of  Utah,  ) 

County  of  Great  Salt  Ixike.   \ 

I,  J.  E.  Smith,  Judge  of  the  Probate  Court  for  said  County,  certify  that  the 
signer  of  the  above  transfer,  personally  known  to  me,  appeared  this  2d  day  of 
April,  A.  D.  1857,  and  acknowledged  that  he  of  his  own  choice  executed  the  fore- 
going transfer.  E.  SillTH. 

In  such  manner  and  form  did  the  leader  of  the  church  extend  his 
power  and  control  over  the  material  as  well  as  the  spiritual  concerns 
of  bis  people.  He  declared  the  "  act  of  consecration  "  to  be  the  means 
whereby  "apostasy "  should  be  prevented,  and  in  bis  homely  way 
explained  that  men  would  remain  Avhere  their  pecuniary  interests  were 
bound  up,  for,  said  he, "  tie  up  the  calf  and  the  cow  will  alwaj^s  come 
home." 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROQJvY    MOUNTAINS.  319 

To  show  likewise  what  personal  gain  Brigham  reaped  by  the 
establishment  of  this  "  Order  of  Enoch,"  we  have  but  to  refer  to  the 
following  from  the  court  records  of  Utah  Territory.  Upon  his  death 
Avhich  occurred  August  29th,  1877,  the  apostle,  George  Q.  Cannon, 
Albert  Carrington,  and  his  own  son,  Brigham  Young,  Jr.,  were  ap- 
pointed administrators  upon  his  real  estate,  amounting  to  millions  of 
dollars. 

In  2d  Utah,  page  560,  Ilagan's  Beports  of  the  Broceedings  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  1877-80,  I  find  an  original  application  in  the  supreme 
court  by  George  Q.  Cannon,  Brigham  Young,  Jr.  and  Albert  Carring- 
ton, executors  of  the  last  will  and  testament  of  Brigham  Young,  de- 
ceased for  a  "writ  of  certiorari  to  review  the  record  of  proceedings 
against  them  for  contempt  in  the  district  court  of  the  Third  Judicial 
District,  wherein  they  were  imprisoned  by  order  of  the  said  court. 
Also  a  petition  for  a  writ  of  liaheas  corjnis  filed  at  the  same  time.  The 
following  were  the  proceedings  in  the  District  Court. 

On  the  14th  of  June,  A.  D.,  1879,  Eraeline  A.  Young,  on  behalf 
of  herself  and  the  heirs  at  law  and  legatees  and  beneficiaries  under  the 
last  will  and  testament  of  Brigham  Young  deceased,  to  wit: 

Emeline  A.  Young,  Dora  L.  Young,  Louisa  Young  Ferguson,  Mi- 
randa Young  Conrad,  Elizabeth  Young  Ellsworth,  Yilate  Young 
Decker  and  Ernest  L.  Young,  Plaintiffs,  v.  George  Q.  Cannon,  Brig- 
ham Young  and  Albert  Carrington,  executors  of  the  last  will 
of  Brigham  Young  deceased;  Mary  Ann  Angell  Young,  Brig- 
ham Young,  Zina  Young  Thatcher,  John  Wellard  Young,  Brigham  T. 
Young,  Bichard  "W.  Young,  Catherine  Young,  Amelia  Young,  Joseph 
A.  Young,  Briant  S.  Young,  Walter  S.  Young,  Leslie  K.  Young,  James 
Young,  and  Eugene  J.  Young,  Alice  Young  Clawson,  Lucy  Ann 
Decker  Young,  Fannie  Caroline  Young  Thatcher,  Heber  Young,  Sha- 
mira  Young,  Arta  De  Crista  Young,  Ferremora  Little  Young,  Clarissa 
Hamilton  Young,  Ella  Elizabeth  Young  Empey,  Hyram  Smith  Young, 
Lorenzo  D.  Young,  Alonzo  Young,  Euth  Young  Johnson,  Adella  El- 
vira Young,  Emily  D.  Partridge  Young,  Augusta  Young  Clawson, 
Caroline  Young  Coxall,  Joseph  Don  Carlos  Young,  Miriam  Young 
Hardy  and  Josephine  Young,  Clara  Decker  Young,  Jenette  Eichards 
Young  Snell,  Nabby  Howe  Young  Clawson,  Charlotte  Talula  Young, 
Lucy  Bigelow  Young,  Susa  Young  Dunford,  Ehoda  Mabel  Young, 
Eliza  Cugers  Young  and  Alfalis  Young,  Margaret  Pierce  Young  and 


320  ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

Brigham  Morris  Young,  Zina  D.  Huntington  Young,  and  Zina  P. 
Young  Williams,  Harriet  E.  Cooke  Young,  Oscar  Brigham  Young, 
Marv^  Van  Cott  Young  and  Fanny  Van  Cott  Young,  Harriet  Barry 
Young,  Phinias  Howe  "Young,  Susannah  Snively  Young  and  Julia 
Young  Burton,  Maria  Young  Dugall,  Willard  Young  and  Phoebe 
Young  Beatie,  Evaline  L.  Young  Davis  and  Mahomri  Moriancumis 
Younsr.  Eliza  R.  Snow  Young,  Xannie  K.  G,  C.  Twiss  Young.  Martha 
Bowker  Young,  Harriet  Amelia  Folsom  Young,  and  Augusta  Adams 
Young,  et.  al.,  Defendants.  The  foregoing  plaintiffs  and  defendants 
embracing  all  the  wives  and  children  of  Brigham  Young  filed  a  com- 
plaint in  equity  against  George  Q.  Cannon,  Albert  Carrington  and 
Brigham  Young,  executors  of  the  last  will  and  testament  of  Brigham 
Youns:,  latelv  deceased,  and  other  defendants. 

In  said  complaint  the  plaintiffs  allege  willful  and  fraudulent  waste 
and  conversion  of  a  large  portion  of  the  estate  of  the  deceased,  of  the 
value  of  $200,000,  under  pretense  of  comj>ensation  for  their  services, 
expenses  of  administration,  and  payment  of  legacies,  and  praying  for 
the  appointment  of  other  trustees,  and  a  decree  compelling  the  said 
executors  to,  make  good  to  the  estate  the  said  waste  and  conversion. 
After  hearing  the  complaint  the  court  granted  the  prayer  and 
appointed  a  receiver.  • 

One  of  the  chief  complaints  of  the  plaintiffs  as  set  forth  in 
their  bill  was  the  conveyance  to  John  Taylor  of  property  of 
the  alleged  value  of  $iOO,000,  held  for  many  years  b}"  the  said  Brigham 
Young,  deceased,  as  Trustee  in  trust  for  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  of 
Latter  Day  Saints.  In  addition  to  the  large  amounts  of  real  estate, 
comprising  houses  and  lots,  improved  farms  and  a  vast  quantity  of 
unimproved  lands,  there  were  likewise  large  amounts  of  personal 
property,  including: 

1,180  Shares     Zion's     Co-operative     Mercantile      Institution 

Stock,  of  the  value  of $118,000 

893  Shares  Provo  Factory  Stock 89,300 

20  Utah  Southern  Railroad  Bonds 60,000 

2,165  Shares  Salt  Lake  City  Railroad  Stocks     . 

8  Washington  Factory  notes    ......     44,000 

1  Promissory  note  against  Erastus  Snow  for  and  without 

interest 9,CO0 

Shares  of   Salt  Lake  City  Gas  Stock  of  the   value  of 

and  with  interest 80,000 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  321 

The  complainants  also  alleged  that  the  income  derived,  from  the 
foregoing  property  was  of  the  value  of  $100,000  annually.  All  of 
which  said  property  was  held  by  Brigham  Young  for  his  own  uses  and 
formed  a  part  of  his  vast  estate,  although  derived  originally  as  Trustee 
in  trust  for  the  church.  But  each  year  the  $100,000  profits  were  in- 
vested in  his  private  operations  and  we  thus  see  what  a  sum  of 
wealth  and  profit  to  the  high  priest  was  the  establishment  of  the 
"Order  of   Enoch." 

"Within  the  walls  of  the  Endowment  House  are  performed  the 
mvsterious  rites  and  ceremonies  that  bind  the  Mormon  people  together 
as  a  religious  sect.  The  promise  of  the  "  Endowments  "  within  these 
"consecrated  walls"  has  been  the  moving  power  under  the  teachings 
of  the  emissaries  of  the  church  to  draw  multitudes  of  believers  from 
the  Old  World  to  the  modern  city  of  Zioninthe  far  interior  of  America. 
Clothed  with  mystery  and  securely  guarded  by  the  most  rigid  oaths 
and  fearful  penalties,  it  was  long  before  aught  of  their  ceremonies  was 
revealed  to  an  inquiring  world.  When  the  liberal  movement  began  in 
the  church  led  by  some  of  their  strongest  and  most  enlightened 
minds  it  was  sustained  by  many  of  both  sexes  who  had  felt  the 
thraldom  imposed  by  their  high  priest  upon  all  their  relations  in  life, 
and  they  improved  the  opportunity  thus  presented  to  break  away  from 
the  church.  They  were  declared  apostates,  disfellowshipped  from  the 
Mormon  Church  and  "delivered  over  to  the  buflfetings  of  Satan." 
There  had  been  a  time  when  their  lives  would  have  paid  the  penalty 
of  such  transgression,  but  a  new  era  of  independence  had  dawned  upon 
the  people,  and  they  became  emboldened  in  their  speech  and  action. 
The  railroad  and  the  telegraph  aided  in  strengthening  and  devel- 
oping the  "  new  idea."  The  introduction  of  the  great  mining  industry 
resulted  in  widening  the  breach.  The  establishment  of  a  goodly  number 
of  non-Mormon  free  schools  assisted  in  spreading  intelligence  and 
awakening  the  spirit  of  independence.  Eree  speech  was  in  a 
measure  achieved,  and  the  despotism  of  the  priesthood  denounced  far 
and  wide  by  a  fearless  liberal  press  that,  in  the  name  of  freedom,  law 
and  good  government,  had  anchored  in  their  midst  to  deal  fearful 
blows  against  the  "  twin  relic  of  barbarism "  and  the  tyranny  of 
Brigham  Young. 

The  chief  instrument  of  this  character,  edited  by  educated  men 
who  had  long  been  followers  of  the  Mormon  faith,   but  who  had 

21 


322  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCTNTAINS. 

broken  away  from  its  moorino^,  under  the  belief  that  Briorham  Touns: 
was  engaged  in  building  up  a  hierarchy  for  tl\e  perpetuation  of  his 
power,  and  who  daily  progressed  in  their  opposition  to  the  church 
until  they  became  finally  its  avowed  enemies,  was  the  SaU  Ldke 
Tribune.  , 


CHAPTEE  XXII. 

UTAH,  CONTINUED  —  THE  NEW  MOVEMENT  — A  CHURCH  CONVULSION  —  DISFEL- 
LOWSHIP  OF  LEADING  MORMONS  BY  BRIGHAM  YOUNG  -  ESTABLISHMENT  OP 
A  LIBERAL  MORMON  JOURNAL-THE  SONS  OF  JOSEPH  SMITH,  THE  FOUNDER 
OF  THE  MORMON  FAITH,  APPEAR  IN  SALT  LAKE  CITY-BRIGHAM'S  WRATH— 
THE  MORMON  ENDOWMENT  HOUSE  — GRAPHIC  EXPOSURE  OF  THE  INSTITU- 
TION WHERE  POLYGAMOUS  MARRIAGES  ARE  SOLEMNIZED -CONFESSION  OF 
A  WOMAN  WHO  HAD  TAKEN  ALL  THE  DEGREES  — THE  GARDEN  OF  EDEN  — 
MANY  EVES  IN  THE  GARDEN  —  BRIGHAM  APPEARS  AS  GOD  AND  DRIVES 
THEM  FROM  THE  GARDEN— THE  WORDS  AND  VOWS  UTTERED  BY  THE  CAN- 
DIDATES—THE OATHS  THEY  TAKE  TO  SUSTAIN  THE  POWER  OF  THEIR 
PROPHET  ABOVE  THAT  OF  THE  GOVERNMENT. 

The  credit  of  this  first  convulsion  in  the  church  belongs  to  Elders 
"W.  S.  God  be  and  E.  L.  T.Harrison,  who  were  the  original  proprietors  and 
editors  of  The  Utah  Magazine^  a  journal  devoted  purely  to  literary  pur- 
suits. Both  of  them  at  the  same  time  became  convinced  of  the  dis- 
honesty of  the  Mormon  faith  as  a  Christian  religion,  and  of  the  intense 
selfishness  and  tyranny  of  Brigham  Young  as  the  great  leader  and  seer  of 
the  church.  They  both  claimed  to  have  spiritual  authority  for  arraying 
themselves  against  their  old-time  faith,  and  believed  that  the  hour  had 
dawned  when  Brigham's  rod  of  iron  should  be  broken  or  wrested  from 
his  hands.  They  united  with  them  in  the  new  movement  Elder  Eli  B. 
Kelsey,  a  Mormon  of  many  years'  standing  and  a  leader  of  the  church, 
and  Elder  Edward  W.  Tullidge,  likewise  of  long  and  lofty  standing  in 
the  church.  These  four  elders  determined  to  strike  at  the  foundation 
of  Brigham's  throne  and  place  him  and  the  church  before  the  people  in 
the  light  in  which  they  properly  existed.  With  the  aid  of  Henry  W. 
Lawrence,  a  wealthy  merchant  and  a  bishop's  counselor,  they  reorgan- 
ized the  Magazine  and  made  it  the  brilliant  medium  of  their  designs 
upon  the  church  and  a  pathway  to  the  reason  and  intelligence  of  the 
better  classes  of  the  Mormon  population. 

At  this  period  two  sons  of  Joseph  Smith,  Alexander  H.  and  David 
Hyrum,  possibly  by  the  invitation  of  the  leaders  of  the  new  movement, 
made  their  appearance  at  Salt  Lake  City  and  began  immediately,  in 

323 


324  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIXS. 

large  public  meetings,  to  assail  the  doctrine  of  polygamy,  declaring  its 
origin  to  be  without  the  pale  of  divine  command,  and  never  contem- 
plated by  their  illustrious  father,  the  founder  of  the  Mormon  faith. 
They  added  as  confirmatory  evidence  the  declarations  of  their  mother 
that  polygam\'  as  a  part  of  the  creed  was  never  mentioned,  much  less 
tolerated,  by  her  husband,  Joseph  Smith.  Brigham  became  highly 
exasperated  at  the  acts  of  these  young  prophets,  and  in  a  stormy  inter- 
view denied  them  the  use  of  the  Tabernacle,  denounced  them  as  impos- 
ters,  and  declared  their  mother  to  be  "  the  damndest  liar  that  llvesP 
They  were  exceedingly  zealous,  and  preached  whenever  they  could 
obtain  a  hearing.  But  Brigham  ordered  the  old  Xauvoo  Legion  to  their 
meetings  to  howl  down  and  destroy  the  effect  of  their  teachings.  Tlie 
Utah  Magazine  now  came  to  their  aid,  and  declared  its  intention  to 
fight  until  every  relic  of  tyranny  in  every  form  was  trodden  under 
foot.  Brigham,  thoroughly  aroused,  now  determined  to  cnish  the 
Magazine^  by  sending  its  owners  and  editors  out  of  the  country  by 
appointing  them  to  "foreign  missions."  Each  declined  to  go,  and 
immediately  raised  the  standard  of  revolt.  This  insubordination  was 
followed  by  the  disfellowship  of  the  revolutionists  from  the  church. 
They  now,  with  all  their  power,  fought  the  infamous  doctrines  of  the 
church,  and  in  strong  and  terse  language  denounced  its  leader  as  the 
creator  of  a  theocracy,  a  personal  government  whose  sole  end  and 
object  was  his  individual  aggrandizement.  Other  and  powerful  influ- 
ences likewise  came  to  their  aid.  The  building  of  the  great  transcon- 
tinental railroad  had  thrown  many  hundreds  of  Gentiles  into  the  valley, 
and  the  Grentile  town  of  Corinne  had  been  founded,  with  a  leading 
Gentile  paper,  which  day  after  day  |X)ured  its  broadsides  of  grajie  and 
canister  into  the  Mormon  camp.  The  Magazine^  at  Salt  Lake  City, 
without  restraint  reviewed  the  teachings  of  the  infallible  priesthood, 
and  became  a  red-hot  iron  in  the  sides  of  the  infuriated  leadei's.  The 
seed  was  sown  broadcast.  From  all  points  of  the  Territory  lettere  of 
sympathy  and  encouragement  came  to  the  disfellowshiped  and  excom- 
municated editors,  and  in  less  than  two  months  after  their  disseverance 
from  the  church  they  began  regular  preachings  to  the  people,  who 
flocked  to  hear  the  new  doctrines  of  the  dissenters.  These  meetings 
were  held  in  the  assembly  rooms  at  the  Masonic  Hall,  and  in  rooms  on 
Main  Street  prepared  for  them  by  the  liberality  of  apostate  Mormons. 
It  now   became  a  conflict  between  the  "bishojis"  and  the  recusant 


i;?HOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  336 

Mormons,  and  the  "  cutting  off"  process  was  resorted  to  in  vain.  They 
became  so  numerous  that  finally  a  halt  was  called  b}^  order  of  the 
highest  authority,  and  the  process  in  a  measure  ceased. 

While  this  work  of  reformation  was  being  so  hotly  pressed  by  the 
leaders  of  the  new  movement,  a  new  and  signal  influence  was  brought 
to  their  aid  by  the  discovery  and  publication  of  the  great  gold  and  sil- 
ver deposits  of  Utah.  Immediately  a  great  influx  of  Gentile  miners, 
merchants  and  speculators  appeared  in  their  midst,  and  a  new  era  (  ' 
business  dawned  for  them  who  had  been  ruthlessly  proscribed  by  tije 
leaders  of  the  theocracy.  Wealth  from  the  new  industry  poured  into 
the  marts  and  channels  of  trade,  business  among  the  stricken  and  pro- 
scribed elements  of  society,  the  Gentiles  and  the  apostates  revived  won- 
derfully, and  from  their  overflowing  coffers  they  were  enabled  to  liber- 
ally sustain  by  financial  aid  that  which  hitherto  they  had  mainly 
supported  by  their  voice  and  presence  at  the  meetings.  They  began 
the  publication  of  the  Daily  Salt  Lake  Tribune. 

With  this  organ  they  hit  the  sledgehammer  blows  that  began  to 
crack  the  foundations  of  the  theoracy.  They  did  not  hesitate  to  expose 
the  guilt  of  the  priesthood  and  the  crimes  committed  in  the  name  of  the 
Mormon  religion.  Emboldened  by  the  spirit  of  truth,  they  daily  pro- 
gressed in  their  bitter  opposition  until  at  length  they  began  the  exposure 
of  those  forms  and  ceremonies  of  the  church  that  hitherto  had  been  so 
guarded  by  the  veil  of  secrecy  and  the  fearful  penalties  attached  to 
their  vows  that  the}^  remained  as  unknown  and  mysterious  as  the 
ancient  oracle  of  Delphi  - 

This  liberal  publication,  sustained  by  the  liberal  element  of  the 
Mormon  people,  was  the  means  of  conveyance  to  the  public  of  the 
"inner  life  "  of  the  Mormon  Church  and  its  sacerdotal  influence  over 
the  lives  and  property  of  its  followers.  It  attacked  and  denounced  its 
superstitions,  and  unfolded  for  the  first  time  to  the  public  gaze  the  mys- 
terious rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  "  Endowment  House  "  where  all 
polygamous  marriages  are  solemnized.  This  was  the  more  effectually 
done  by  the  confession  of  a  Mormon  lady,  who,  having  passed  its 
ordeal  previous  to  her  own  polygamous  marriage,  narrated  at  length, 
her  experience  while  partaking  of  these  rites.  In  the  following  chap- 
ter the  reader  will  obtain  a  complete  knowledge  of  these  rites  and  cer- 
emonies though  in  concise  statement. 

On  a  certain  day,  not  necessary  to  mention,  I  went  to  the  Endow- 
ment House  at  8  o'clock  in  the  morning,  taking  with  me  my  endowment 


326 


BCHOLS    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAINS. 


clothes  consisting  of  garments,  robe,  cap,  apron  and  moccasins, 
I  believe  people  used  to  take  their  own  oil,  but  that  is  now  discontinued, 
as  fees  are  charged.  I  went  into  the  Reception  "Room  attached  to  the 
main  building,  which  was  crowded  with  men  and  women,  having  their 
bundles  of  clothing.  The  entrance  doo**  is  on  the  east  side,  and  in  the 
southwest  corner  there  is  another,  next  to  which  the  desk  stood  where 
the  clerk  recorded  the  names,  etc.  Around  the  north  and  west  sides 
were  benches  for  the  people  to  sit  on. 

On  going  up  to  the  desk,  I  presented 
my  credentials  from  the  bishop  in  whose 
ward  I  was  staying,  and  George  Reynolds, 
who  was  then  acting  as  clerk,  asked  me  my 
name,  those  of  my  parents,  when  and  where 
I  was  born,  and  when  I  was  baptized  into 
the  Mormon  Church. 

That  over,  he  told  me  to  leave  my  hat, 
cloak  and  shoes  in  that  room,  and  taking  up 
my  bundle  I  went  into  another  room  where 
I  sat  waiting  till  it  came  my  turn  to  be 
washed. 

One  of  the  women,  an  officiating  high 
priestess,  told  me  to  come  behind  the  curtain 
where  I  could  hear  a  great  deal  of  splash- 
ing and  subdued  conversation.  I  went,  and  after  I  was  undressed  I  had 
to  step  into  a  long  bath  about  half  full  of  water,  when  another  woman 
proceeded  to  wash  me.  I  objected  strongly  to  this  part  of  the  bus- 
iness, but  was  told  to  show  a  more  humble  spirit.  However,  when  she 
got  down  to  my  feet  she  let  me  go,  and  I  was  turned  over  to  the 
woman  who  had  spoken  to  me  at  first,  and  whose  name  was  Bathsheba 
Smith,  one  of  the  widows  of  Apostle  George  A.  Smith.  She  wore  a 
large,  shiny  apron  and  her  sleeves  tucked  up  above  her  elbows.  She 
looked  thoroughly  like  business. 

Another  woman  was  standing  beside  her  with  a  large  wooden 
spoon  and  some  green  olive  oil  in  a  cow's  horn.  This  woman  poured 
the  oil  out  of  the  spoon  into  Bathsheba's  hand,  who  immediately  put 
it  on  my  head,  ears,  eyes,  moulh  and  every  ];art  of  my  body,  and  as 
she  greased  me  she  muttered  a  kind  of  prayer  over  each  member  of  my 
body:     My  head,  that  I  might  have  knowledge  of  the  truths  of  God; 


GARMENT. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS.  337 

my  eyes,  that  I  might  see  the  glories  of  the  kingdom;  my  mouth,  that 
I  might  at  all  times  speak  the  truth;  my  arms,  that  they  might  be 
strong  in  the  defense  of  the  gospel;  my  bosom — and  here  I  must  ask 
my  readers  not  to  think  I  want  to  tell  this  part  of  the  story,  but  I  do 
want  people  to  know  the  truth  and  how  disgusting  and  indelicate  this 
thing  is.  Mormon  people  deny  many  of  these  things,  and  civilized  and 
decent  people  can  scarcely  realize  that  this  institution  is  as  infamous 
as  it  really  is,  but  I  solemnly  assert  that  these  things  do  exist.  To 
contiirae:  My  bosom,  that  I  might  nourish  the  children  whom  I 
might  raise  by  my  husband — I  was  not  then  married,  but  expected  to 
be— and  another  part  of  my  body,  that  I  might  raise  up  a  goodly  seed 
that  they  might  be  pillars  of  strength  to  the  up-building  and  strength- 
ening of  God's  kingdom  upon  the  earth.  And  so  she  got  down  to  my 
feet,  when  she  hoped  they  might  be  swift  in  the  paths  of  righteous- 
ness and  truth. 

She  then  turned  me  over  to  the  woman  who  had  washed  me,  and 
who  whispered  mj'  new  and  celestial  name  in  my  ear.  I  believe  I  am 
to  be  called  up  in  the  morning  of  the  resurrection  by  it.  It  was 
"  Sarah."  I  felt  disappointed.  I  thought  I  should  have  received  a 
more  distinguished  name.  She  told  me  that  new  name  must  never  be 
spoken,  but  often  thought  of,  to  keep  away  evil  spirits.  I  should  be 
required  to  speak  it  once  that  day,  but  she  would  tell  me  what  part  of 
the  ceremony,  and  that  I  should  never  again  have  to  speak  it. 

She  then  told  me  to  put  on  my  garments. 

These  are  made  in  one  piece.  On  the  right  breast  is  a  square,  on 
the  left  a  compass,  in  the  center  a  small  hole,  and  on  the  knee  a  large 
hole,  which  is  called  the  "  Stone."  We  were  told  that  as  long  as  we 
kept  them  on  no  harm  could  befall  us,  and  that  when  ^Ye  changed  them 
we  were  not  to  take  them  all  off  at  once,  but  slip  out  a  limb  at  a  time 
and  immediately  dive  into  the  clean  ones.  The  neck  was  never  to  be 
cut  low,  or  the  sleeves  short,  as  that  would  be  patterning  after  the 
fashions  of  the  Gentiles. 

After  this  I  put  on  my  clothes,  and  in  my  stocking  feet  Avaited 
with  those  who  were  washed  and  anointed  until  she  had  finished  the 
remaining  two  or  three.  This  done,  the  little  calico  curtains  were 
drawn  aside  and  the  men  and  women  stood  revealed  to  each  other. 
The  men  looked  very  uncomfortable  and  not  at  all  picturesque.  They 
only  had  their  garments  and  shirts  on,  and  they  really  did  seem  as 
though  they  were   ashamed  of  themselves,  as  well  they  might  be. 


328  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUXTAIXS. 

Joseph  F.  Smith  then  came  to  where  we  were  all  waiting,  and  told 
us  that  if  ''  we  wanted  to  back  out,  now  was  o.^r  time,"'  because  we 
should  not  be  able  afterward,  and  that  we  were  bound  to  go  right 
through.  All  those  that  wanted  to  go  through  were  to  hold  up  their 
hands,  which,  of  course  everyone  did,  believing  that  all  the  good  and 
holy  things  that  were  to  be  seen  and  heard  in  the  "  House  of  the 
Lord "  were  yet  to  come.  He  then  told  us  that  if  ever  any  of  us 
attempted  to  reveal  what  we  saw  and  heard  in  the  "  House"  oui*  mem- 
ories would  be  blighted,  and  we  should  be  everlastingly  damned,  for 
they  were  things  too  holy  to  be  spoken  of  between  each  other,  aftei* 
we  had  once  left  the  Endowment  House.  We  were  then  told  to  be 
very  quiet  and  listen.    Joseph  F.  Smith  then  went  away. 

In  a  few  moments  we  heard  voices  talking  loudly  so  that  the 
people  could  hear  them  in  the  adjoining  room.  I  afterward  found  out 
in  passing  through  that  it  was  the  prayer  circle  room.  It  was  sup- 
posed to  be  a  conversation  between  Elohim,  Head  Grod,  and  Jehovah. 
The  conversation  was  as  follows : 

Elohim  to  Jehovah — "  Well,  Jehovah,  I  think  we  will  create  an 
earth ;  let  Michael  go  down  and  collect  all  the  elements  together  and 
found  one." 

Answer — "  Very  well,  O  Lord  God,  it  shall  be  done." 

Then  calling  to  another  man,  we  could  hear  him  say  : 

"  Michael,  go  down  and  collect  all  the  elements  together  and  form 
an  earth,  and  then  report  to  us  what  you  have  done." 

Answer — "  Yery  well,  O  Lord  God." 

The  man  they  called  Michael  then  left  the  prayer  circle  room  and 
came  through  th^  room  they  called  the  World,  into  the  Garden  of  Eden, 
the  door  of  which  was  shut  that  faced  the  places  where  we  were  stand- 
ing, listening  and  waiting.  He  remained  there  a  second  or  two,  and 
everjrthing  was  quiet.  At  the  end  of  that  time  we  heard  him  going 
back  the  -same  way,  to  where  Elohim  and  Jehovah  were  waiting. 
When  he  got  back  he  said :  "  I  have  collected  all  the  elements  together 
and  founded  an  earth,  what  would'st  thou  have  me  do  next?"  Using 
the  same  formula  every  time  they  sent  him  down  to  the  world,  they 
then  told  him  to  separate  the  land  from  the  water,  light  from  darkness, 
etc.,  and  so  they  went  regularly  through  the  creation,  but  they  always 
told  him  to  come  up  and  report  what  he  had  done. 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    KOCKY    MOUJS'TAIXS. 


329 


When  the  creation  was  supposed  to  be  finished,  Michael  went  back 
and  told  them  it  was  very  fair  and  beautiful  to  look  upon.  Elohim 
then  said  to  Jehovah  that  he  thought  they  had  better  go  down  and 
have  a  look  at  it,  which  they  did,  and  agreed  with  Michael  that  it  was 
a  beautiful  place;  that  it  seemed  a  pity  it  should  be  of  no  particular 
use,  but  thought  it  would  be  a  good  idea  to  create  man  to  live  in  it 
and  cultivate  these  things. 

They  then  came  out  of  the  Garden  of  Eden  Avhich  was  supposed 
to  have  been  newly  finished  and,  shutting  the  door  after  them,  came 
to  where  we  Avere  standing.  We  were  then  told  to  shut  our  eyes,  and 
Jehovah  said  to  Michael,  "  Give  me  a  handful  of  dust,  and  I  will  create 
man."  We  were  then  told  to  open  our  eyes,  and  we  saw  a  man  that 
he  had  taken  from  the  crowd  standing 
beside  Jehovah,  and  to  whom  Jehovah 
said:  "I  will  call  thee  Adam,  for  thou 
shalt  be  the  father  of  all  mankind."  Jeho- 
vah then  said  it  was  not  good  for  man  to 
be  alone,  so  he  would  create  a  woman  and 
a  helpmate  for  him.  We  were  again  told 
to  close  our  eyes,  and  Adam  was  requested 
to  go  to  sleep,  which  he  obligingly  did. 
Jehovah  was  then  supposed  to  take  a  rib 
from  Adam's  side  and  form  Eve.  We 
were  then  told  to  open  our  eyes,  and  look 
upon  the  handiAvork  of  the  Lord.  When 
we  did,  we  saw  a  woman  taken  from 
among  the  crowd,  who  was  standing  by 
Adam's  side.  Jehovah  said  he  would  call  the  woman  Eve,  because 
she  would  be  the  mother  of  all  mankind. 

The  door  of  the  Garden  of  Eden  was  then  opened,  and  we  all 
marched  in  with  our  little  bundles  the  men  going  first,  as  they  always 
take  precedence,  and  we  ranged  ourselves  around  the  room  on 
benches.  The  four  sides  of  the  room  are  painted  in  imitation  of 
trees,  flowers,  birds,  wild  beasts,  etc.  The  ceiling  was  painted  blue, 
dotted  over  with  golden  stars;  in  the  center  of  it  was  the  sun,  a  little 
farther  along,  the  moon,  and  all  around  were  the  stars.  In  each 
corner  was  a  Masonic  emblem.  In  one  corner  is  a  compass,  in  another 
the  square,  the  remaining  two  were  the  level  and  the  plumb.     On  the 


ROBE. 


330  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

east  side  of  the  room,  next  the  door,  was  a  painted  apple  tree,  and  in 
the  northeast  part  of  the  room  was  a  small  wood.^ n  altar. 

After  we  had  seated  ourselves,  Jehovah  told  Adam  and  Eve  that 
they  could  eat  of  every  tree  in  the  garden  except  of  this  particular 
apple  tree,  for  on  the  day  that  they  ate  of  that  they  should  surely  die. 

He  then  took  his  departure,  and  immediately  after  in  came  a  very 
'lively  gentleman,  dressed  in  a  plain  black  morning  suit,  with  a  little 
apron  on,  a  most  fiendish  expression  on  his  face  and  joyfully  rubbing 
his  hands.  This  gentleman  was  supposed  to  be  "  the  Devil.*'  Certainly 
his  appearance  made  the  supposition  quite  easy,  by  the  by  I  have 
since  seen  that  same  gentleman  administering  the  sacrament  in  the 
Tabernacle  on  Sundays.  He  went  up  to  Eve  and  remarked  that  it 
was  a  very  beautiful  place,  and  that  the  fruit  was  so  nice,  would  she 
like  to  taste  one  of  those  apples.  She  demurred  a  little,  and  said 
she  was  told  not  to,  and  therefore  mustn't.  But  he  pretended  to  pluck 
one  of  the  painted  apples  and  give  it  to  her,  and  she  pretended  to  eat 
it.  He  then  told  her  to  ask  Adam  to  have  some,  and  she  did.  Adam 
objected  strongly  to  tasting,  knowing  the  penalty,  but  Eve  eventually 
overcame  his  scruples,  saying :  "  Oh,  my  dear,  they're  so  nice,  you 
haven't  any  idea,  and  that  nice  old  gentleman,  here  pointing  to  the 
Devil,  says  that  he  can  recommend  them  and  you  need  not  be  afraid 
of  what  Jehovah  says." 

Adam  consented,  and  immediately  after  he  said,  "  Oh,  what  have 
I  done,  and  how  foolish  I  was  to  listen  to  you."  He  then  said  that  he 
could  see  himself,  and  that  they  had  no  clothes  on,  and  they  must  sew 
some  fig  leaves  together.  Every  one  then  made  a  dive  for  his  apron 
out  of  the  little  bundles.  This  apron  is  a  square  half-yard  of  green 
silk,  with  nine  fig  leaves  worked  on  it  in  brown  sewing  silk.  A  voice 
was  then  heard  calling  for  Adam,  who  pretended  to  hide,  when  in 
came  Jehovah.  He  gave  Adam  a  good  scolding,  but  finally  told  him 
that  he  would  give  him  certain  instructions,  whereby  he  would  have 
a  chance  to  regain  the  presence  of  his  father  and  God  after  he  was 
driven  out  into  the  world.  These  instructions  consisted  of  grips,'etc., 
and  the  garments  he  wore  would  protect  him  from  all  eviL  Mormons 
say  of  these  garments  that  the  iMittern  was  revealed  direct  from  heaven 
to  Joseph  Smith,  and  are  thesame  as  were  originally  worn  by  Adam. 

They  then  put  on  their  caps  and  moccasins,  the  women's  caps  being 
made  of  Swiss  muslin.  It  is  one  yard  square,  rounded  at  one  comer  so 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS.  331 

as  to  fit  the  head,  and  there  are  strings  on  it  which  tie  under  the  chin. 
The  moccasins  are  made  of  linen  or  cahco.  The  men's  are  made 
exactly  like  those  of  pastry  cooks,  with  a  bow  on  the  right  side.  I 
should  here  mention,  before  I  go  further,  that  Bathsheba  Smith  and 
one  of  the  priests  enacted  the  parts  of  Adam  and  Eve,  and  so  stood 
sponsors  for  the  rest  of  us,  who  were  individually  supposed  to  be 
Adams  and  Eves. 

They  then  proceeded  to  give  us  the  first  grip  of  the  Aaronic  or 
Lesser  Priesthood,  which  consists  in  putting  the  thumb  on  the  knuckle 
of  the  index  finger,  and  clasping  the  hands  round.  We  were  then 
made  to  swear  "  to  obey  the  laws  of  the  Mormon  Church  and  all  they 
enjoin,  in  preference  to  those  of  the  United  Staias."  The  penalty  for 
revealing  this  grip  and  oath  is  that  you  will  have  your  throat  cut  from 
ear  to  ear,  and  your  tongue  torn  from  your  mouth,  and  the  sign  of  the 
penalty  is  drawing  the  hand  Avitli  the  thumb  pointing  toward  the 
throat  sharply  across  and  bringing  the  arm  to  the  level  of  the  square, 
and,  with  the  hand  upraised  to  heaven,  swearing  to  abide  the  same. 

"We  were  then  driven  out  of  this  into  the  room  called  the  World, 
where  there  were  three  men  standing  at  a  small  altar  on  the  east  side 
of  the  room,  who  were  supposed  to  represent  Peter,  James  and  John, 
Peter  standing  in  the  center.  He  was  supposed  to  have  the  keys  of 
heaven.  Men  representing,  or  trying  to,  the  different  religious  sects 
then  came  in  and  presented  their  views  and  said  they  wanted  to  try 
and  save  those  fallen  children.  In  doing  this  they  could  not  refrain 
from  exaggerating  and  coarsely  satirizing  the  different  sects  they  rep- 
resented. Previous  to  their  coming  in,  however,  Peter  had  presented 
to  us  the  gospel  of  Christ — at  least  he  told  us  that  Christ  had  come  to 
die  for  the  original  sin,  but  that  we  had  got  to  work  out  our  own  sal- 
vation, and  that  in  the  last  days  a  prophet  should  be  raised  up  to  save 
all  those  that  would  believe  in  his  divine  mission;  consequently  these 
different  representatives  were  told  that  their  doctrines  did  -not  suit  the 
people  and  that  there  was  something  wanting  in  their  faith  and  so  they 
could  go.  Then  the  Devil  came  in  and  tried  to  allure  the  people,  and 
bustling  up  to  the  altar,  Peter  said  to  him  :  "  Hallo,  Mr.  Devil,  how  do 
you  do  to-day  !  it's  a  very  fine  day  isn't  it  ?  What  have  you  come 
after  ? "  The  Devil  replied  that  he  didn't  seem  to  take  to  any  of  these 
so-called  Christian  religions,  why  didn't  they  quit  bothering  after  any- 
thing of  the  kind,  and  live  a  life  of  pleasure,  etc.  However  he  was  told 
to  go  and  that  quickly. 


33i  ECHOES   FROU   THE   BOCKT    MOUXTAIXS. 

Peter  thee  gave  the  second  grip  of  the  Aaronic  or  Lesser  Priest- 
hood, which  consists  of  putting  the  thumb  between  the  knuckles  of 
the  index  and  second  fingers  and  clasping  the  hand  around.  The 
penalty  for  revealing  this  is  to  be  sawn  asunder  and  our  members  cast 
into  the  sea.  The  sign  of  the  penalty  was  drawing  the  hand  sharply 
across  the  middle  of  the  body.  To  receive  that  grip  we  had  to  put  on 
our  robes,  which  consisted  of  a  long  straight  piece  of  cloth  reaching  to 
our  feet,  doubled  over  and  gathered  very  full  on  the  shoulder  and  round 
the  waist-  There  was  also  a  long,  narrow  piece  of  cloth  tied  around 
the  waist,  called  the  "  sash."  It  was  placed  on  the  right  shoulder  to 
receive  this  grip.  The  people  wear  their  aprons  over  it.  The  men 
then  took  the  oath  of  chastity  and  the  women  the  same;  they  don't 
consider  polygamy  at  all  unchaste,  but  said  that  it  was  Heaven's 
ordained  law,  and  that  a  man  to  be  exalted  in  the  world  to  come  must 
have  more  than  one  wife.  The  women  then  took  the  oath  of  obedience 
to  their  husbands,  having  to  look  up  to  them  as  their  gods.  It  is  not 
possible  for  a  woman  to  go  to  Christ,  except  through  her  husband. 

Then  a  man  came  in  and  said  that  the  gospel,  which  during  those 
few  minutes*  interval  had  lain  dormant  for  1.800  years,  had  been 
restored  to  earth,  and  that  an  angel  had  revealed  it  to  a  young  boy 
named  Joseph  Smith,  and  that  all  the  gifts,  blessings  and  prophecies 
of  old  had  been  restored  with  it,  and  this  last  revelation  was  to  be 
called  the  Latter-day  Dispensation.  The  priests  pretended  joyfully  to 
accept  this,  and  said  it  was  the  very  thing  they  were  in  search  of, 
nothing  else  having  had  the  power  to  satisfy  them. 

They  then  proceeded  to  give  us  the  first  grip  of  the  Melchizedek 
or  Higher  Priesthood,  which  is  said  to  be  the  same  that  Christ  held. 
The  thumb  is  placed  on  the  knuckle  of  the  index  finger,  and  the  index 
finger  is  placed  straight  along  the  palm  of  the  hand,  while  the  lower 
part  of  the  hand  is  clasped  with  the  remaining  fingers.  The  robe  for 
this  grip  was  changed  from  the  right  to  the  left  shoulder.  We  were 
then  made  to  swear  to  avenge  the  death  of  Joseph  Smith,  the  martyr, 
tosether  with  that  of  his  brother,  Hvrum,  on  this  American  nation, 
and  that  we  would  teach  our  children  and  children's  children  to  do  so. 
.  The  penalty  for  this  grip  and  oath  was  disembowelment. 

"We  were  then  marched  into  the  northeast  room,  the  men,  of 
course,  always  going  first,  designated  the  prayer  circle  room.  We 
were  here  made  to  take  an  oath  of  obedience  to  the  Mormon  priest- 
hood. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  333 

And  now  the  highest  or  grand  grip  of  the  Melchizedek  priesthood 
was  given.  "VVe  clasped  each  other  round  the  hand  with  the  point  of 
the  index  finger  resting  on  the  wrist  and  little  fingers  firmly  linked 
together.  The  place  on  the  wrist  where  the  index  finger  points  is 
supposed  to  be  the  place  where  Christ  was  nailed  to  the  cross, 
but  they  tore  out  and  he  had  to  be  nailed  again,  and  so  you 
place  your  second  finger  beside  the  index  on  the  wrist.  It  is 
called  the  sure  sign  of  the  nail,  and  if  the  grip  is  properly  given  it  is 
very  hard  to  pull  apart.  The  robe  was  changed  from  the  left  to  the 
right  shoulder  to  receive  this  grip.  The  men  then  formed  a  circle 
round  the  altar,  linking  their  arms  straight  across,  and  placed  their 
hands  on  one  another's  shoulders.  The  priest  knelt  at  the  altar  and 
took  hold  of  one  of  the  men's  hands  and  prayed.  He  told  us  that  the 
electric  current  of  prayer  passed  through  that  circle,  and  that  was 
the  most  efficacious  kind  of  prayer.  The  women  stood  outside  the 
circle  with  their  veils  covering  their  faces,  the  only  time  throughout 
the  ceremony  that  they  did  so. 

The  prayer  over,  they  all  trooped  up  the  staircase  on  the  north 
side  of  the  house,  into  the  room  called  the  Instruction  Room,  where 
the  people  sat  down  on  the  benches  on  the  west  side  of  the  room. 
Facing  them  about  midway  between  floor  and  ceiling  was  a  wooden 
beam,  that  went  across  the  room  from  north  to  south,  and  from  which 
was  suspended  a  dirty  looking  piece  of  what  was  once  white  calico. 
This  was  called  the  "  Yail,"  and  is  supposed  to  be  an  imitation  of  the 
one  in  Solomon's  Temple.  On  this  vail  are  marks  like  those  on  the 
garments,  together  with  extra  holes  for  putting  the  arms  through,  and 
a  hole  at  the  top  to  speak  through.  But  before  going  through  the  vail, 
we  received  a  general  outline  of  the  instructions  we  had  received  down 
stairs.  This  over,  the  priest  took  a  man  to  the  vail  to  one  of 
the  openings  where  he  knocked  with  a  small  wooden  mallet 
that  hung  on  the  wooden  support.  A  voice  on  the  other  side  of  the 
vail,  it  was  supposed  to  be  Peter's,  asked  who  was  there,  when  the 
priest,  answering  for  the  man,  said,  "Adam  having  been  faithful  desires 
to  enter."  The  priest  then  led  the  man  up  to  the  west  side  of  the  vail, 
where  he  had  to  put  his  hands  through  and  clasp  the  man  or  Peter,  to 
whom  he  whispered  his  new  name,  and  the  only  one  he  ever  tells,  for 
they  must  never  teU  their  celestial  names  to  their  wives,  although  the 
wives  must  tell  theirs  to  their  husbands,  through  the  holes  in  the  vail. 


334  ECHOES    FEOM    THE     ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

He  was  then  allowed  to  go  through  to  the  other  side,  which  was 
supposed  to  be  heaven,  and  this  is  where  a  strong  imagination  might 
be  of  some  use,  for  anything  more  unlike  heaven  I  can't  conceive. 
The  man  having  got  through,  he  went  to  an  opening  and  told  the 
gatekeeper  to  call  for  the  woman  he  was  about  to  marry,  telling 
him  her  name.  She  then  stepped  up  to  the  vail.  They  couldn't  see 
each  other,  but  put  their  hands  through  the  openings,  one  of  their 
hands  on  each  other's  shoulder,  and  the  other  around  the  waist. 
"With  the  arms  so  fixed,  the  knees  were  placed  within  each  other, 
the  feet,  of  course,  being  the  same,  the  woman's  given  name  was  then 
whispered  through  the  vail,  then  her  new  and  celestial  name,  then  the 
priestess  who  stood  by  to  instruct  the  women,  told  them  to  re[>eat 
after  her  a  most  disgusting  formula  or  oath.  I  can  not  remember  it  all 
thoroughly,  but  what  I  do  consists  of  "  the  heart  and  the  liver,  the  belly 
and  the  thighs,  the  marrow  and  the  bones."  The  last  and  highest  grip 
of  the  Melchizedek  priesthood  was  then  given  through  the  vail. 

They  then  released  their  hold  of  each  other,  and  the  priestess, 
taking  the  woman  to  an  opening  knocked  the  same  as  they  did  at 
the  men's  entrance  and  the  gatekeeper  having  asked,  "Who  is  there?" 
and  the  priestess  having  replied,  "  Eve,  having  been  faithful  in  all 
things,  desires  to  enter,*'  Eve  was  accordingly  ushered  into  heaven. 

Before  I  go  farther,  I  must  tell  how  the}'  believe  the  entrance  inta 
heaven  is  to  be  gained  on  the  morning  of  the  resurrection.  Peter  will 
call  up  the  men  and  women,  for  it  is  not  possible  for  a  woman  to  be 
resurrected  or  exalted,  or  to  be  made  a  queen  in  heaven,  unless  some 
man  takes  pity  on  her  and  raises  her. 

If  the  marks  on  the  garments  are  found  to  correspond  with  those 
on  the  vail  the  dead  are  buried  in  the  whole  paraphernalia,  if  you  can 
give  the  grips  and  tokens,  and  your  new  name,  and  are  dressed 
properly  in  your  robes,  why,  then,  one  has  a  sure  |)ermit  to 
heaven,  and  will  pass  by  the  angels  who  they  purpose  are  to  be  only 
ministering  servants  to  a  more  exalted  glory;  the  more  wives  they 
have,  they  think,  the  higher  their  glory  will  be. 

To  resume :  After,  we  saw  Joseph  F.  Smith  sitting  at  a  table 
recording  the  names  of  those  who  were  candidates  for  marriage.  He 
wrote  the  names  in  a  book  the  existence  of  which  marriage  register 
this  truthful  apostle  has  since  denied,  so  that  a  polygamous  marriage 
might  not  be  found  out  and  then  he  wrote  the  two  names  on  a  paper 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  335 

to  be  taken  into  the  sealing  room  to  the  officiating  j)riest,  so  that  he 
might  know  whom  he  was  marrying.  After  having  given  this  slip  of 
paper  to  the  priest  Daniel  IL  Wells,  we  knelt  at  a  little  wooden  altar- 
they  are  all  alike  in  the  Endowment  House.  He  then  asks  the  man 
if  he  is  willing  to  take  the  women  to  wife,  and  the  woman  if  she  is 
willing  to  take  him  for  a  husband.  They  both  having  answered  yes, 
he  tells  the  man  he  must  look  to  God,  but  the  woman  must  look  to  her 
husband  as  her  God,  for  if  he  lives  his  religion  the  spirit  of  God  will 
be  in  him,  and  she  must  therefore  yield  him  unquestioning  obedience, 
for  he  is  as  a  god  unto  her,  and  then  concludes  by  saying  that  he,  having 
authority  from  on  high  to  bind  and  to  loose  here  upon  earth,  and  what- 
soever he  binds  here  shall  be  bound  in  heaven,  seals  the  man  and 
woman  for  time  and  all  eternity. 

He  then  tells  the  man  and  woman  to  kiss  each  other  across  the 
altar,  the  man  kneeling  on  the  north  side  and  the  woman  on  the  south, 
and  so  it  is  finished.  Sometimes  they  have  witnesses,  sometimes  not ; 
if  they  think  any  trouble  may  arise  from  a  marriage  or  that  the  woman 
is  inclined  to  be  a  little  perverse,  they  have  no  witnesses,  neither  do 
they  give  marriage  certificates,  and  if  occasion  requires  it,  and  it  is  to 
shield  any  of  their  polvgamous  brethren  from  being  found  out,  they 
will  positively  swear  they  did  not  perform  any  marriage  at  all,  so  that 
the  women  in  this  church,  have  but  a  very  poor  outlook  for  being  con- 
sidered honorable  wives. 

When  the  marriage  ceremony  was  over  we  came  out  of  the  "  Seal- 
ing Room"  and  I  crossed  "  Heayen"  into  the  ladies'  dressing  room, 
where,  after  having  dressed  and  my  husband  paid  the  fees,  we  took  our 
departure,  together  with  that  of  the  "  Holy  Spirit." 

It  was  half-past  three  p.  m.  when  we  left,  I  having  gone  there  at 
eight  o'clock  in  the  morning.  You  can  probably  imagine  how  fatigued 
one  feels,  after  listening  patiently  all  the  time  to  their  incessant  talk- 
ing. Certainly  at  the  end  of  the  time  one  feels  more  like  taking  in 
nourishment  than  listening  to  the  prompting  of  the  "  Holy  Spirit."  I 
should  perhaps  have  remarked  before  that  the  priests,  when  going 
through  the  House,  wear  their  ordinary  clothing,  and  come  straight  in 
to  the  "  House  of  the  Lord  "  with  their  dirty  top  boots  on  as  though 
they  had  just  come  off  a  farm,  while  we  poor  sinners  were  obliged  to 
walk  in  our  stocking  feet  lest  the  floor  should  be  defiled. 

The  little  addition  attached  to  the  main  buildin";  on  the  west  side 
and  in  which  the  font  is,  is  used   for  re-baptizing  people  before  they 


336  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

can  be  allowed  tx)  go  through  the  house,  and  is  quite  a  separate  affair 
from  the  washing  and  anointing;  people  are  ge.^;ierally  baptized  a  day 
or  two  before  they  go  through  the  house.  I  was  baptized  the  night 
before.  On  this  same  evening  I  was  told  that  as  I  was  going  through 
the  "  House  of  the  Lord  "  on  the  following  da\',  I  must  pay  the  very 
strictest  attention  to  everything  I  should  see  and  hear,  as  it  would  be 
for  my  benefit  hereafter.  I  was  obedient  in  that  respect,  for  I  remem- 
ber everything  that  happened  as  vividly,  as  though  it  were  yesterday, 
and  if  it  has  not  been  for  my  benefit,  I  hope  that  this  article  may 
prove  of  some  use  in  warning  and  enlightening  people  as  to  that  most 
horrid  blasphemy,  jargon  and  mummery  that  goes  on  in  that  most 
sacred  "  House  of  the  Lord."  Mbs.  G.  S.  Richakds. 

Such  are  a  portion  of  the  forms  and  ceremonies  denominated  as 
religious  performances  of  the  Mormon  Church.  There  have  been 
crusades  against  those  elder  orders  that  have  been  transmitted  from  the 
building  of  Solomon's  Temple.  Would  it  not  be  well  for  all  such 
crusaders  to  turn  their  "steel"  toward  this  "shield"  of  the  Mormon 
Church  ?  Imperishable  glory  may  be  won  by  a  sharp  and  chivalrous 
contest.    Try  it  ye  men  who  despise  the  ancient  Hyrum ! 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

THE  WINTER  RIDE  FROM  SALT  LAKE  CITY— DESCRIPTION  OF  SCENERY— MORMON 
SETTLEMENTS  — THREE  DAYS'  RAIN  — THE  MORMON  BIBLE  — OUR  BLOODED 
HORSES  — MONROE  SALISBURY,  THE  MAIL  CONTRACTOR  — THE  "SLEEP"  AT 
CHICKEN  CREEK  — OUR  PRE-EMPTED  RANCH  ON  THE  SEVIER  RIVER. 

About  the  middle  of  December,  1867,  I  started,  in  company  with 
Monroe  Salisbury,  the  mail  contractor  for  the  Southern  Utah  mail 
route,  on  a  trip  through  the  Mormon  settlements  of  Southern  Utah. 
The  month  of  December  had  been  very  fair,  the  air  salubrious,  and  the 
warm  sun  and  rarified  atmosphere  imparted  a  vigor  unknown  outside 
of  the  mountain  region.  The  animal  spirits  were  intense.  One  always 
felt  elevated  without  imbibing  that  "  nectar  of  the  mountain  gods" 
known  to  all  pioneers  as "  Valley  Tan."  As  an  old  miner  often 
remarked,  he  felt  on  rising  in  the  morning  "  as  if  he  had  six  bottles  of 
pop  under  his  belt  and  all  going  off  at  once !"  Strange  to  relate,  fruit 
was  still  ripening  on  the  trees.  Peaches,  plums  and  grapes  were 
exposed  for  sale  on  Main  Street.  But  a  few  days  before,  I  had  pur- 
chased and  eaten  rosy-cheeked  peaches  and  luscious  grapes.  On  a  sin- 
gle cluster,  presented  by  a  friend,  I  had  counted  164  grapes.  In  fact, 
it  was  up  to  this  time  a  beautiful  sunshiny  month,  without  a  speck  of 
a  cloud  to  mar  the  serene  blue  that  floated  in  gentle  waves  overhead. 
And,  oh  !  what  glorious  days  they  have  in  Utah !  What  scenery  of 
sunshine,  mountain,  lake  and  iridescent  clouds  at  sunset ! 

I  remember  one  bright  afternoon  in  the  month  of  September, 
1868,  driving  with  my  wife  in  sight  of  Great  Salt  Lake,  on  a  road  that 
wound  along  the  base  of  the  Uintah  Range.  The  atmosphere  was  ex- 
ceedingly clear  and  invigorating.  Our  spirited  animals  seemed  to  par- 
take of  the  refreshing  scene  and  sped  briskly  away  over  the  hard,  dry 
road,  past  Warm  Spring  Lake  and  the  river  Jordan  thaX  rolled  its 
fresh  waters  into  the  saline  depths  of  Great  Salt  Lake. 

For  ten  miles  we  drove  over  a  road  almost  as  smooth  and  level  as 
the  asphalt  pavements  on  the  great  boulevards  that  grace  the  suburbs 

337  23 


338  SCHOBS    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

of  the  larger  cities  of  the  Union,  It  was  one  of  those  delightful  after- 
noons bathed  in  the  glories  of  an  Italian  sun,^hose  soft,  salabrions 
waves  rippled  over  mountain  and  valley,  and  rolled  in  gentle  billows  of 
sunshine  upon  the  gilded  silvery  surface  of  the  great  inland  late  that 
washed  the  valley  for  a  hundred  miles,  giving  promise  of  a  golden  sun- 
set such  as  the  traveler  discerns  alone  in  the  solitudes  of  the  mountains, 
and  rivaled  only  by  the  glories  of  the  dying  sun  beneath  Italian  skies. 
All  the  world  seemed  at  lest.  Ifot  a  note  of  discord  jarred  the  har- 
mony of  that  quiescent  scene.  Great  nature  lay  asleep  in  the  lap  of 
silence,  and  her  monumental  piles,  lifting  their  tall  heads  to  theetherial 
blue,  in  mad  delight  kissed  the  iridescent  clouds. 

But  as  beautiful  as  were  the  skies  and  as  glowing  the  glories  of 
that  resplendent  afternoon,  there  was  yet  in  store  for  us  a  rare  pano- 
rama of  beauty  that  alone  could  be  produced  by  the  confluence  of 
mountains,  lake,  moon  and  sunshine,  and  with  it  came  the  glories  of 
the  dying  day  painted  in  iridescent  colors  upon  the  fleeing  shadows  and 
golden  billows  of  drooping  sunlight. 

It  was  still  daylight  when  we  returned  from  our  long  drive  to 
Farmington,  but  the  shadows  of  approaching  twilight  began  to  creep 
over  the  snowy  crests  of  the  lofty  Wahsatch  and  the  Western  Range, 
and  roll  down  their  rocky  ridges  in  to  the  peaceful  valley  below.  The 
Spirit  of  the  Mountains  seemed  to  stand  above  the  lofty  summits  and 
gently  drop  a  filmy  vail  of  sunshine  toward  their  distant  base,  softly 
creeping  with  the  shadows,  and  through  the  gauze  of  filtered  sunshine 
shot  flaming  rays  that  glowed  like  molten  fire  in  a  universal  furnace. 
As  the  orb  sank  still  lower  in  the  west,  this  filmy  vaU  of  sancloud 
changed  its  ephemeral  hue  from  rosy  pink  to  darkest  purple,  and,  ling- 
erinff  on  the  loftv  hillsides  and  above  the  vallev  and  the  frostv  lake  as 
if  pinned  by  stars  unseen,  the  pale  moon,  a  full,  round  world,  peeped 
over  the  summit  and  showed  its  silver  face  above  the  snow-capped 
"Wahsatch.  Ah,  what  a  glorious  vision !  Eays  of  golden  light  and 
flames  of  fire  shooting  upward  to  the  zenith;  pink  and  purple  clouds  in 
veil  and  gauze,  hanging  over  mountain  and  valley;  a  dying  sun  forg- 
ing its  last  bolts  of  flame  on  the  heights  of  the  Western  Eange,  ere  sink- 
ing to  its  night  of  rest ;  at  the  same  instant  a  pale,  round,  silvery  moon 
resting  on  the  Eastern  Bange,  and  each  orb  mirrored  deep  in  the  waters 
that  stretchetl  far  below,  while  over  all  sat  the  silence  of  the  solitudes, 
awaiting  its  solemn  turn  to  clothe  the  3arth  in  darkness. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  339 

Well,  it  Tvas  a  glorious  clay  as  we  rolled  gaily  out  of  Salt  Lake 
City,  seated  in  a  strong,  light  wagon,  built  expressly  for  mountain  serv- 
ice, behind  a  pair  of  beautiful  blooded  mares,  full  of  metal  and  eager 
for  the  race  through  the  valley.  The  level  roads  were  hard  and  dry 
and  we  sped  onward  at  a  rapid  pace  in  the  invigorating  air  of  the  early 
morning. 

Many  settlements  were  passed,  clusters  of  farmhouses,  surrounded 
by  gardens  and  well-tilled  fields,  from  which  the  grain  had  been  gar- 
nered and  stored  for  winter  use,  and  orchards  and  vines,  with  the  fruit 
still  clinging  to  their  branches.  Before  us  stretched  a  long  and  beauti- 
ful vista,  formed  by  the  lofty  mountain  walls  that  rose  on  either  hand, 
and  the  green  valley  that  lay  between.  It  was  almost  a  panorama, 
unfolding  mile  upon  mile  its  continuity  of  gray  walls,  green  verdure 
and  cerulean  blue  that  arched  the  mountains  as  a  dome.  Lehi,  at  the 
head  of  Utah  Lake,  and  the  village  of  Pleasant  Creek  had  been 
passed,  and  about  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  we  reached  the  city  of 
Provo.  Here  we  halted  for  the  night,  and  soon  were  mastering  the 
details  of  a  steaming  supper.  It  was,  of  course,  a  Mormon  household, 
and  its  proprietor  was  the  spiritual  ruler  of  the  community,  which 
likewise  embraced  all  other  rule.  We  arose  in  the  morning,  refreshed 
after  a  night  of  "  sweet  sleep  and  peaceful  rest,"  ready  to  continue  our 
journey  southward.  What  was  our  astonishment  to  behold  the  earth 
wet  and  the  heavens  weeping !  The  beautiful  sunshine  of  yesterday 
had  given  place  to  sombre  clouds,  and  the  rain  poured  down  in  cease- 
less torrents.  In  tlie  night  the  stars  conspired  with  the  sun  and  glee- 
fulh""  twinkled  behind  a  great  bank  of  storm-cloud,  and  the  radiant  sun 
frowned  upon  the  earth  and  hid  its  golden  head  for  two  long,  weary 
days.  We  were  prisoners  in  the  Bishop's  Castle.  We  did  not  suffer 
for  ought  save  our  libert}''.  We  pined  for  the  green  fields,  thesunshine 
and  the  "  brush  "  on  the  road  with  our  swift-footed  "  steppers."  All 
the  long  forenoon  Ave  Avent  constantly  to  the  door  to  gaze  upon  the 
clouds,  in  the  vain  hope  of  beholding  a  rift  that  might  promise  a  burst 
of  sunshine.  Only  the  rain  made  answer,  as  it  pattered  ceaselessly 
upon  the  window-panes  and  dripped  in  deep  plashes  from  the  roof  upon 
the  pools  beneath.  The  "  Mormon  Prophet "  was  likewise  a  "  weather 
prophet,"  and  he  vouchsafed  the  information  that  it  was  a  "  three- 
days'  rain."  And  so  it  proved.  What  Avas  to  be  done  to  Avhile  away 
the  tedious  hours  ?    We  had  no  books  or  papers  in  our  satchels ;  Ave 


340  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUXTAIXS. 

had  anticipated  a  continuous  journey,  and,  therefore,  no  time  to  read ! 
There  were  no  games  of  any  sort,  or  musical  'instruments,  save  the 
muffled  crow  of  the  bedraggled  rooster,  who  looked  the  picture  of 
misery  and  ruin  as  he  wandered  aimlessly  before  the  door,  his  tail- 
feathers  sweeping  the  ground.  Such  a  thing  as  a  pack  of  cards  was 
never  seen  in  a  Mormon  household,  for  they  were  taught  to  believe 
them  an  invention  of  Satan.  The  ladies  of  Zion  were  not  permitted 
to  converse  at  length  with  Gentiles,  and  so  we  were  denied  the  soft 
influence  of  woman''s  voice.  Their  sentences  were  monosyllables.  The 
men  were  absent  most  of  the  time,  about  the  bams  and  cattle,  per- 
forming the  work  as  necessary  in  the  rain  as  in  the  sunshine,  and  my 
companion  was  gloomy  and  morose,  and,  almost  without  a  word,  sat 
nursing  his  ^v^ath  at  this  unwonted  change  in  our  plans  and  expectations. 
Driven  at  length  well  nigh  to  despair  I  made  a  search  for  literature  of 
some  sort  to  dull  the  grim  edge  of  the  tedious  hours.  Three  days  of 
rain  and  imprisonment  within  the  narrow  walls  of  a  Mormon  house- 
hold, where  everything  was  as  silent  as  the  grave,  broken  only  at  long 
intervals  by  a  sudden,  jerky  exclamation  from  the  surcharged  feelings 

of  my  exasperated  comrade :  "  Well,  Til  be  d d  (dipped)  if  this 

ain't  duller  than  death ! "  He  was  a  man  of  strong  emotions,  as  vrtell 
as  physique.  He  has  since  grown  very  rich  on  those  starry  routes  of 
mail  contractors,  where  great  fortunes  are  gobbled  in  a  day,  provided 
you  get  the  proper  "  expedition,  increase  and  extension  I "  He  rides 
in  a  satin-lined  carriage,  on  downy  cushions,  and  fares  sumptuously 
every  day;  and  I  wish  him  well,  for  far  worse  men  have  grown  rich 
on  maU  contracts.  But  in  those  early  days  he  had  crossed  the  plains 
many  times  with  a  "  buU  "  train,  and  knew  how  to  goad  an  ox  to  per- 
fection, all  of  which  required  a  degree  of  patience  that  would  crown 
the  life  of  a  saint  with  glory  and  immortality.  He  had  oft  times 
faced  death  in  the  perils  of  field,  flood  and  Indian  violence,  on  the 
long,  weary  way  from  the  Missouri  River  to  the  valley.  For  him  now 
to  lose  his  courage  and  patience  and  be  abashed  by  the  rainfall,  was, 
indeed,  marvelous.  But  so  it  was ;  so  I  began  to  search  for  a  book, 
pamphlet  or  newspaper,  or  anything,  no  matter  how  ancient  of  date, 
so  that  I  might  beguile  "the  long,  long,  weary  day."  I  searched  in 
vain !  Finally,  I  asked  one  of  the  "  silent  women ''  if  there  was  any- 
thing to  read  in  the  house.  Hesitating  a  moment,  as  if  engaged  in 
thought,  she  replied : 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS.  341 

"  No,  sir ;  nothing  that  you  might  wish  to  read." 

"Well,  Madam,"  I  called  ail  Mormon  women  madam  young  or 
old  for  fear  of  offending  their  dignity,  presuming  them  all  to  be 
married,  "  have  you  anything  at  all  that  is  printed?  " 

"Yes,  sir." 

"What  is  it?" 

"A  Mormon  Bible,"  she  answered. 

"Will  you  permit  me  to  read  it  ? " 

"Yes  sir." 

She  opened  a  closet  and  taking  therefrom  the  "precious  book" 
gave  it  to  me  without  word  or  comment.  Hitherto  I  had  never  beheld 
or  read  a  line  of  the  "Revelations,"  said  to  be  discovered  by  young 
Joe  Smith  "under  the  guidance  of  an  angel,"  and  upon  which  he  had 
founded  the  Mormon  faith,  and  soon  I  became  deeply  immersed  in  its 
weird  and  mystical  disclosures. 

I  read  Orson  Pratt's  account  of  the  origin  of  The  Book  of  Mormon ; 
of  the  fulfillment  of  the  ancient  Hebrew  prophecies;  of  the  first 
inhabitants  of  America ;  of  the  New  World  first  peopled  by  the  family 
of  Jared,  who  emigrated  here  after  the  confusion  of  tongues  at  Babel ; 
how  they  grew  and  multiplied  and  in  course  of  time  became  sinful  and 
finally  were  exterminated  in  battles,  in  one  of  which  two  millions  of 
•  men  were  slain  six  hundred  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ.  I  read  of 
the  second  emigration  of  the  family  of  Lehi,  of  the  tribe  of  Manasseh 
who  came  over  from  Jerusalem  during  the  reign  of  Zedekiah  in  eight 
"barges,"  how  they  flourished  for  a  long  period,  but  falling  likewise 
into  evil  ways,  were  exterminated  as  their  predecessors  by  battles  and 
earthquakes  about  A.  D.  420.  I  read  of  the  third  migration  eleven 
years  after  Lehi,  whose  fate  they  likewise  shared.  Of  the  murder  of 
Laban  and  the  theft  of  his  plates ;  of  the  building  of  the  "barges."  Of 
Lehi  and  his  sons.  Of  Jareth's  interview  with  "the  Lord."  After  the 
difficulties  of  early  navigators  and  of  the  wonderful  compass;  of  the 
landing  in  America;  of  the  founding  of  nations  and  building  of  great 
cities;  of  Christians  in  America  100  years  before  the  birth  of  Christ; 
of  the  founding,  of  a  church ;  of  preachings  and  persecutions,  fearful 
signs,  wonders  and  prophecies,  and  of  battles  between  the  ISTephites 
and  Lamanites.  Of  the  gold  plates  hid  in  the  hill  Cumorah,  situated 
between  Palmyra  and  Manchester  in  the  State  of  New  York.      Here  a 


342  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

great  battle  was  fought  between  the  Xephites  and  the  wicked  Laman- 
ites,  in  which  230,000  men  were  slain  and  the  X^ihites  utterly  routed 
and  destroyed — but  twenty-four  escaping  besides  Mormon.  But 
Mormon  had  received  from  his  father  the  plates  of  ]N^ephi,  which  con- 
tained the  sacred  records  of  his  people,  religiously  transmitted  from  father 
to  son.  These  he  had  hid  in  the  hill  Cuinorah,  before  the  battle,  after 
he  had  written  an  abridgment  of  them  which  he  gave  to  his  son  Moroni, 
who,  upon  the  death  of -his  father  Mormon,  soon  afterward  slain,  added 
to  them  a  short  account  of  his  own,  together  with  an  abridged  account 
of  the  Jonadite  expedition  and  then  buried  the  whole  of  the  plates  in 
Cumorah,  alx)ut  the  year  400.  A  short  time  afterward  Moroni  died, 
the  last  of  his  nation,  and  with  him  the  Xephites  became  extinct.  The 
descendants  of  the  wicked  Lananites,  who  were  distinguished  by  the 
dark  color  of  their  skins,  are  the  tribes  of  the  Xorth  American  Indiads, 
found  by  Columbus,  when  he  discovered  America.  So  saveth  the  plates 
of  Kephi. 

These  plates  remained  in  their  hiding  place  for  more  than  one 
thousand  and  four  hundred  years  until  finally  revealed  to  Joseph 
Smith  "  through  the  ministry  of  an  angel"  on  the  22nd  of  September, 
A.  D.  1S23. 

The  Book  of  Mormon  forms  a  large  volume  of  nearly  six  hundred 
pages  of  fine  printed  matter.  It  is  divided  into  fifteen  books,  and  some 
of  the  books  are  subdivided  into  chapters,  and  the  whole  work  is 
claimed  to  contain,  besides  a  vast  quantit}"^  of  purely  doctrinal  matter, 
the  record  of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  American  continent. 

For  two  and  a  half  days,  while  the  rain  fell  and  mj'  companion 
damned,  I  pored  over  the  volume  and  heeded  not  the  storm  that 
wailed  without.  I  entered  deeply  into  its  m\'stic  depths  and  for  the 
first  time  became  familiar  with  the  peculiar  tenets  of  the  strange  faith 
upon  which  the  Mormon  Church  was  founded.  Xo  one  disturbed  me 
as  I  thus  delved  into  the  Mormon  mysteries — save  my  companion  who 
occasionally  gave  me  the  benefit  of  his  own   belief,  that  the  whole 

d d  thing  was  a  prodigious  fraud  and  fit  only  for  idiots  and  lunatics. 

Of  course  this  was  not  spoken  in  the  presence  of  the  Bishop.  The 
mail  contractor  was  too  shrewd  a  man  to  wound  the  sensitive  feelings 
of  a  ruler  in  the  church,  especially  as  he  was  in  constant  business  com- 
munication with  the  Mormons  all  along  the  southern  mail  route.  The 
Bishop  possessed  another  work  called  the  Book  of  Jacob,  but  I  had  po 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  343 

time  then  to  grasp  its  symbolical  contents.  That  and  a  further 
review  of  the  Mormon  Bible  were  reserved  for  anotlier  period,  when  I 
was  more  at  liberty  to  digest  its  revelations. 

In  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  of  the  third  day  the  clouds  broke, 
the  rain  ceased,  the  sun  again  shimmered  on  mountain  top  and  valley, 
and  sank  at  night  behind  the  Western  Range  in  a  great  red,  fiery  orb. 
The  dawn  of  the  morning  found  us  ready  for  departure,  and  bidding 
the  family  which  had  so  hospitably  entertained  us  for  three  days  a 
hearty  "  good-bye,"  we  again  started  briskly  on  the  road.  The  heavy, 
continuous  downpour  of  rain  had  washed  the  road,  and  little  gullies 
and  streamlets  impeded  our  rapid  progress.  Still  the  horses  were 
fresh  and  full  of  fire  and  would  not  brook  delay,  and  so  we  pushed  on 
at  a  very  comfortable  pace,  until  mile  upon  mile  separated  us  from  the 
friends  we  had  left  behind.  As  we  progressed  the  country  became 
less  thickly  settled,  the  farm  lands  unfilled  and  the  broad  expanse  of 
the  valley  devoted  more  particularly  to  the  grazing  of  many  herds. 
As  the  day  wore  on  we  became  convinced  that  the  storm,  which  we 
found  from  the  condition  of  the  road  and  surrounding  country  to  have 
been  universal,  had  not  yet  spent  its  force.  The  settlements  through 
which  we  passed  rapidly  were  now  at  great  intervals,  many  miles 
intervening,  showing  that  we  were  entering  upon  the  outposts  of  Zion 
that  lay  between  its  capital  and  Fillmore  City.  Springvnlle,  Spanish 
Fork,  Pavson,  Santaquin,  Nephi  and  Levan,  all  Mormon  settlements, 
and  more  or  less  thriving  and  prosperous,  according  to  their  natural 
locations  and  the  favor  of  the  church  leaders,  were  all  passed  and  their 
different  points  of  interest  pbserved  and  noted  for  further  use. 

As  the  day  declined  the  rain  again  set  in,  and  when  just  before 
dark  we  reached  Chicken  Creek,  where  we  were  to  remain  that  night, 
the  lands  were  fairly  swimming.  "We  went  at  once  to  our  "  quarters  " 
for  the  night.  It  was  the  residence  of  the  mail  carrier  on  a  short 
route  that  diverged  at  right  angles  from  that  point.  He  was  absent 
on  his  route,  having  left  that  morning,  and  would  not  return  for  two 
days.  His  wife,  however,  made  us  as  comfortable  as  possible  and  gave 
us  the  best  her  humble  home  afforded.  She  prepared  us  a  supper  of 
fried  bacon  and  eggs,  tea  and  milk,  and  johnny  cake  baked  on  an  open 
oven.  "We  did  full  justice  to  the  meal,  albeit  we  were  in  rather  an 
uncomfortable  position.  The  dwelling,  composed  of  two  rooms  and  a 
*'  lean  to  "  for  a  kitchen,  was  located  on  the  side  of  a  hill  along  which 


344  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

the  mail  route  descended,  and  the  great  overflow  cf  rain  poured 
through  the  side  door  of  her  dining-room  where  ij-e  sat  at  supper,  and 
set  all  movable  things  upon  the  floor  '*  a-swimming."  To  keep  our 
feet  from  being  likewise  washed  away  we  were  compelled  to  elevate 
our  kncss  toward  our  chins,  and  thus  sit  while  we  partook  of  our 
wholesome  fare.  The  sleeping  room  adjoining,  to  which  we  repaired 
after  our  meal,  although  of  dirt  floor  and  sod  roof — oh,  how  primitive 
were  the  styles  of  architecture ! — was  perfectly  dry,  as  it  was  elevated 
more  than  a  foot  above  the  floor  of  the  dining-room.  A  bricrht  fire  in 
the  stone  chimney-place  greeted  us  and  shed  its  warmth  and  light  on 
our  wet  clothing  and  travel-stained  features. 

We  sat  before  the  blazing  logs,  watching  the  sparks  fly  upward, 
and  soon  were  wrapjjed  in  a  revery  of  thought.  An  hour  after  we 
were  joined  by  the  good  housewife  who,  having  concluded  her  house- 
hold duties,  came  to  enjov^  the  warmth  and  comfort  of  a  dry  room. 
And  thus  the  hours  sped  by  until  our  yawns  gave  notice  that  tired 
nature  Avas  awaiting  "  its  sweet  restorer.*'  The  only  bed  in  the  house 
was  in  this  room ;  not  a  bedstead,  but  a  broad  structure,  built  in  the 
right  angle  of  the  two  walls,  and  not  a  poor  couch  to  rest  upon. 

The  kind  hostess  informed  us  that  this  couch  awaited  us  whenever 
we  chose  to  retire,  and  after  imparting  the  information  she  sat  and 
gazed  upon  the  dying  embers  that  flared  their  weird  forms  in  the  dark 
background.  iMy  companion  and  I  looked  atone  another  momentarily, 
each  urging  the  other  by  sly  winks  and  nods  to  begin  the  process  of 
disrobing.  And  thus  we  lingered  for  another  half  hour  or  more — worn 
with  the  long  drive  and  overcome  by  the  sqft  influence  of  the  drowsy 
god,  nodding  in  our  seats  and  bowing  our  heads  to  the  flickering  flames 
upon  the  hearthstone.  Finding  I  could  withstand  the  influence  no 
longer,  I  softly  arose  from  my  seat  and,  as  expeditiously  as  possible, 
disrobed  and  lay  down  between  the  blankets.  iMy  companion  followed 
in  the  same  swift  and  secret  manner  and  soon  we  were  wrapjied  in 
sound  slumber.  I  have,  however,  a  faint  recollection,  ere  dropping 
into  the  arms  of  Morpheus,  of  seeing  a  white  fonn  flitting  about  the 
room  and  preparing  the  fire  for  the  night,  and  then  a  slight  sound  as  of 
some  one  arranging  a  pillow  and  coverlets  upon  the  bed.  It  could  not 
have  been  my  comrade  as  he  wi^s  already  asleep,  he  so  avowed  upon 
the  honor  of  a  man,  and  I  know  he  was  a  truthful  and  honorable  man, 
and  would  not  fabricate  a  lie  on  such  a  small  matter.      It  must  have 


I 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  345 

been  some  one  else,  but  I  could  not  affirm  it  under  oath,  as  the  room 
was  rather  dark  and  I  was  much  too  sleepy  to  pay  particular  attention. 
But  in  the  gray  dawn  of  the  morning  on  awakening  T  thought  I  saw 
two  heads  on  the  bolster,  and  one  much  fairer  than  the  other.  But 
then  again  I  might  have  been  mistaken,  as  I  had  mud  in  my  eyes,  the 
dripping  from  the  sod  roof  overhead,  for  the  saying  is,  that  with  such 
a  covering  for  the  roof,  it  rains  three  days  inside  after  the  rain  has 
ceased  on  the  outside. 

When  next  we  awoke,  it  was  by  the  sound  of  a  cheery  voice 
calling  us  to  breakfast,  and  as  we  asked  no  questions,  we  were  not 
what  might  be  called  inquisitive  men  we  never  "-positively"  knew 
how  many  reposed  in  that  bed  that  night.  It  might  have  been  three, 
and  possibly,  mind  I  say  possibly,  it  was;  but  we  were  much  too  tired 
and  sleepy  to  investigate,  and  besides  what  mattered  it  ?  Our  slumbers 
were  in  nowise  disturbed !  "We  knew  she  was  a  kind  hostess  and  a 
good  and  true  woman,  and  who  in  the  world  or  in  Utah  had  a  better 
right  to  sleep  in  a  bed  than  its  owner  ?  Would  you  expect  her  to  lie 
down  on  the  earth  floor  ? 

Early  after  breakfast  we  again  started  upon  our  journey.  The 
road  was  rough  and  hilly  and  the  morning  hazy  and  misty.  A  "  spell " 
of  bad  weather  had  really  set  in,  and  sadly  interfered  with  the 
pleasures  of  our  trip.  But  our  splendid  team  was  just  as  bright  as  if 
the  glad  sunshine  still  glorified  the  hills  and  valleys,  and  moved 
onward  with  sharp  pace  and  ringing  footsteps  on  the  hard  road.  Salt 
Creek  was  early  reached,  and  in  a  few  hours  wo  came  to  the  banks 
of  the  Sevier  River,  where  the  tall  grasses  still  waved,  although  swept 
by  a  chill  autumn  wind.  At  this  point  was  a  beautifully  located 
section  of  land,  of  which  I  was  to  be  the  sole  proprietor  when  Uncle 
Sam's  surveyor  should  drive  the  boundary  stakes.  In  looking  over 
the  land  we  found  that  a  Mormon  family  had  made  a  location  thereon 
and  built  a  rude  shelter  in  a  beautiful  grove,  not  far  from  the  winding 
road  that  led  to  the  ford.  As  we  turned  our  horses'  heads  toward  this 
new  abode  in  the  wilderness,  a  raincloud  burst  overhead  and  the  water 
fell  in  streams.  We  tied  our  horses  securely  to  the  trees  and  sought 
shelter  within.  As  we  entered  we  found  the  family,  consisting  of  the 
man  and  wife  and  about  a  dozen  children  of  various  ages,  from  the 
twins  at  the  breast,  to  the  grown  daughter,  all  engaged  in  their 
matutinal  meal  of  corn  bread  and  hog-ribs  to  which  each  appeared  to 
be  doing  ample  justice. 


346  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

We  informed  him  of  our  ownership  and  inquired  as  to  the  length  of 
time  he  proposed  to  remain  upon  the  land.  He  politely  replied  that,  "  K 
the  court  knew  herself  he  belie vetl  he  had  come  to  stay ! "  We  answered 
that  two  parties  could  not  own  the  same  piece  of  land  at  the  same 
time  with  a  clear  title,  and  that  we  had  l>ecome  seized  of  it  b}'  law  as 
a  mail  station,  and  proposed  to  have  it  surveyed  and  make  the  necessary 
improvements.  He  replied  that  he  had  no  objection  to  the  contem- 
plated improvements;  that  they  would  in  nowise  interfere  with  his 
hogs  and  patch  of  corn,  and  that  the  particular  piece  of  ground  was 
big  enough  for  both.  He  was  not  disposed  to  be  hoggish  in  the  matter, 
and  would  make  no  objection  to  our  building  a  house  as  good  as  his 
own,  only  he  didn't  want  it  next  door,  where  the  hogs  and  chickens 
might  get  mixed.  In  fact,  he  wouldn't  object  to  a  little  company  any 
how,  as  it  was  quite  lonesome  for  Betsy  and  Sal,  and  he  supposed  we 
■would  bring  our  women  folks  along.  My  comrade  intimated  that  he 
was  not  yet  possessed  of  the  luxury  of  a  wife.  At  this  the  old  woman 
pricked  her  ears  and  winked  at  Sal,  who  all  the  while  had  been  gazing 
at  the  good-looking  man  beside  me  with  the  beautiful  gold  watch  and 
chain,  and  diamond  studs  in  his  shirt  bosom,  and  said,  in  a  tone  of  voice 
between  a  saw-mill  and  a  file  sharpener,  that  Sal  was  a  likely  girl  and 
would  make  any  man  a  good  wife,  provided  he  was  rich  enough  to  keep 
her  in  sun-bonnets  and  new  calico  gowns.  To  all  of  which  Sal  gave  a 
simpering  assent.  The  case  was  growing  serious  and  reminded  me  of 
a  brother  lawyer  in  the  States  who  had  business  in  one  of  the  sparsely 
settled  Xorth western  counties,  and  being  overtaken  by  night,  put  up 
at  the  first  farmhouse  he  struck  on  the  road. 

It  was  a  log  house  contahiing  two  rooms  and  furnished  in  the 
primitive  style  of  the  early  pioneers.  The  family  consisted  of  the  old 
man  and  his  wife  and  a  full-grown  daughter  who  was  slashing  around 
barefooted  and  had  a  fist  like  a  meat  ax.  After  gathering  uj)  the 
fragments  of  the  supper  and  clearing  the  room,  tiie  old  woman,  who 
had  been  looking  the  lawyer  all  over,  took  a  seat  immediately  in  front 
of  him,  and  without  any  preliminary  remarks,  asked : 

'•  Do  3'ou  wear  such  fine  duds  all  the  time  ? " 

"  All  the  time,  madam."     replied  the  lawyer. 

"Is  that  a  real  diamond  in  your  shirt?" 

"Yes,  madam." 

"  And  I  heard  you  tell  the  old  man  that  you  had  a  horse  and 
buggy  at  home,  besides  the  one  j'ou" ve  got  here  ? " 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    llOCKY    MO  Uif TAINS. 


347 


%> 

■%  m 
4^^.% 


SAL'S  MOTHER  AND  THE  LAWYER. 


I 


"Yes,  that  is  true." 
"And  that  watch  and 
chain  are  real  gold,  aren't 
they  ? " 

"Yes;  the  real  stuff." 
"  Cost  as  much  as  two 
hundred  dollars  ? " 

"  More  than  that ;  over 
three  hundred  dollars." 

"  My  stars !  Why,  you 
must  get  as  much  as  forty 
dollars  a  month  and 
board?"  she  gasped. 

"Madam,  I  frequently 
make  fifty  dollars  in  a 
single   day." 

"Heavens!  Why  you 
must  be  worth  a  thousand 
dollars  ? " 

"Yes,  ten  times  that  amount." 

"How  you  talk!" 

Some  moments  of  silence  elapsed  ere  she  recovered  from  her 
amazement.  Then  she  shpped  softly  to  the  corner  of  the  house,  to  see 
if  anj'one  was  listening  to  her  conversation  w^ith  the  lawyer.  Return- 
ing quickly,  she  came  up  close  to  him  and  lowering  her  voice  to  a 
whisper,  said : 

"  Say,  mister!  We've  been  saving  Sally  these  last  two  years  for 
the  boss  of  a  saw  mill  four  miles  up  the  creek,  but  if  you  are  mashed 
on  her  and  she  is  mashed  on  you,  I'll  run  the  old  man  six  miles  through 
the  bush  after  a  preacher  to  do  the  splicing." 

The  lawyer  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief,  and  in  his  politest  tones 
informed  the  old  lady  that  he  already  had  a  wife,  who  was  anxiously 
awaiting  his  return  home.  The  old  woman  fell  in  a  fit  at  this  revela- 
tion, so  depressing  was  the  information,  and  so  poignant  her  grief  and 
disappointment,  from  w^hich  the  "  old  man "  revived  her  by  the 
prompt  application  of  corn-juice  and  a  mustard  plaster. 

The  lawyer  took  an  early  departure  in  the  morning,  before  the 
anxious  mother  was  out  of  bed. 

As  the  rain  had  ceased  and  neither  of  us  was  in  the  matrimonial 
market,  we  likewise  beat  a  hast}'-  retreat  and  left  our   "  old  man  "  and 


348  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    EOCKY    AIOUXTAIXS. 

his  ambitious  family  in  undisturbed  possession  of  the  land.  I  saw  Lira 
but  once  afterward,  on  our  return  northward,  and^^hen  but  for  a  moment. 
I  never  reaped  any  profit  from  the  *"mail  section,"  as  I  never  could 
prevail  on  the  "man  of  chains  and  rods*'  to  go  thus  far  into  the  wilder- 
ness to  establish  its  metes  and  bounds.  But  on  that  spot  of  ground 
where  the  tall  grass  waved  its  green  and  gold  when  kissed  bv  the 
summer  breeze,  and  wild  flowers  filled  the  air  with  their  sweetest  per- 
fume, a  city  stands,  built  by  the  brawny  hands  of  men  who  opened 
the  rich  mines  of  the  adjacent  mountains,  and  led  the  way  to  wealth 
and  human  progress.  That  missionary  of  civilization,  the  steam 
engine,  plows  its  swift  way  through  the  valley,  and  the  ancient 
mountain  walls  reecho  its  call  to  the  adventurous  hosts  who  have 
planted  its  banners  on  their  lofty  heights.  It  is  a  wilderness  no  more. 
The  grass  and  wild  flowers  have  disappeared,  and  the  lone  hut  of 
the  settler,  ujxjn  which  that  storm-cloud  burst  that  December  morning 
so  many  years  ago,  but  in  their  stead  stands  "a  flower  of  civilization," 
the  citv  of  Sevier,  the  home  of  strongmen  and  brave  women,  who  have 
tunneled  the  mountains,  unfolded  its  golden  wealth  and  smitten  the 
lion  that  stood  in  the  pathway  of  human  progress.  Others  have 
reaped  the  wealth  that  might  have  been  mine;  but  I  have  no  regrets, 
Thev  have  earned  it  by  the  right  of  conquest.  Xot  the  conquest  of 
battle  and  carnage,  but  the  victory  won  by  the  stern  conflict  of  man 
with  the  forces  of  nature.  They  have  broken  the  wild  mountain  bar- 
riers, and  opened  the  way  for  the  tide  of  wealth  and  happiness  that 
Christianity  links  with  the  stalwart  arm  of  industry.  Generations  yet 
unborn  will  reap  where  they  have  sown,  and  I  say,  '-GkKl  bless  them  I" 


MORMON    HERD,    SOUTHERN    UTAH. 


849 


CHAPTER   XXIT. 

CHRISTMAS  EVE  IN  ROUND  VALLEY— NO  BED  TO  SLEEP  ON-BBATING  OF  DRUMS 
AND  FIRING  OF  GUNS  IN  HONOR  OF  CHRISTMAS  MORNING-THE  TERRIBLE 
STORM  IN  THE  MOUNTAINS— THE  MORMON  FORT  IN  THE  WILDERNESS,  THE 
CITY  OF  REFUGE— THE  HOSPITALITY  OF  ITS  KIND-HEARTED  KEEPER-HIS 
BEAUTIFUL  DAUGHTER— THE  RIDE  TO  FILLMORE  CITY-TO  BEAVER— TO  ST. 
GEORGE-THE  BUSINESS  BISHOP  OF  BEAVER-THE  MORMON  BALL  AT  FILL- 
MORE CITY-THE  BELLES  OF  FILLMORE  CITY— OUR  DANCE— NARROW  ESCAPE— 
THE  RIVER  FORDED-RETURN  TO  SALT  LAKE-SPIES  ON  OUR  TRACK. 

AiTEK  crossing  the  Sevier  our  road  led  to  the  uplands,  and  our 
course  was  quite  hilly.  In  these  higher  altitudes  snow  had  mingled 
with  the  rain,  and  the  ground  was  covered  with  quite  a  depth.  This 
was  a  grazing  country,  and  herds  of  fat  and  lean  cattle  were  seen  at 
intervals.  I  now  beheld  the  novel  sight,  new  to  me  at  that  time, 
of  the  cattle  feeding  on  the  short,  sweet  and  dried  buffalo  grass,  with 
which  the  hills  abounded,  all  of  which  was  beneath  snow.  The 
cattle  would  plant  themselves  firmly  on  their  hindquarters  and  with 
their  fore  legs  paw  the  ground  swiftly,  causing  the  snow  to  fly  in  a 
silvery  spray  and  rapidly  uncover  the  ground,  exposing  the  grass  upon 
which  they  would  feed.  All  winter  long  they  sustain  themselves 
upon  this  dried  grass,  which  is  truly  nutritious.  Cattle  that  have  been 
worked  thin  and  poor  from  hard  continuous  labor  through  the  spring 
summer  and  fall  months  are,  at  the  close  of  the  season,  turned  out  to 
graze  all  winter  upon  this  grass,  and  in  the  spring  are  returned 
to  their  work  fat  and  sleek  and  strong.  Yerily,  "  they  get  their  own 
living  without  cost  to  their  owners,"  and  are  in  much  better  condition 
than  if  housed  and  fed  at  home.  It  was  a  cold,  dreary  day,  and  the 
long  drive  made  us  feel  quite  uncomfortable.  By  nightfall  we  reached 
the  settlement  of  Round  Yalley,  and  after  some  parleying  and  the 
promise  of  considerable  gain,  we  finally  obtained  permission  to 
remain  over  night  at  the  house  of  the  polygamous  postmaster.  It 
was  quite  evident  that  these  people  were  not  well  disposed  toward 
strangers,  especially  those  of  the  Gentile  persuasion.  We  were  told 
we  could  have  supper  that  night  and  breakfast  in  the  morning,  but 
that,  as  the  accommodations  were  quite  limited,  no  bed  or  blankets 

S51 


352  ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

could  be  furnished  for  rest  or  sleep.  TTe  were  very  tired,  and  needed 
rest  after  our  long,  wearisome  ride,  but  we  could  not  prevail  upon  the 
proprietor  of  this  harem  to  give  us  a  bed  even  for  a  part  of  the  night, 
although  there  were  at  least  five  or  six  in  the  house.  Tiiis  Mormon 
abode  was  a  long,  rambling  structure  of  one  story,  securelv  built,  and 
formed  part  of  a  hollow  square,  in  which  plan  the  settlement  was 
constructed  for  protection  against  the  attacks  of  Indians,  which  were 
quite  frequent,  as  this  settlement  was  in  the  Indian  country.  The 
whole  was  surrounded  by  a  wall  of  mud  brick.  They  cultivated  their 
farms  and  gardens  in  the  vicinitj',  and  on  the  approach  of  a  band  of 
hostiles  would  retreat  to  their  homes,  thus  shaped  as  a  fort,  and 
successfully  resist  an  attack.  This  Mormon  possessed  three  wives,  one 
of  them  quite  comely,  and  as  the  house  had  the  appearance  of  being 
built  in  sections,  I  thought,  perhaps,  that  one  might  have  been  added 
with  the  acquisition  of  each  wife.  As  the  last  addition  seemed  of 
more  recent  construction,  I  surmised  that  the  last  wife  had  not  long 
been  an  inmate  of  this  household. 

It  was  pitch  dark  without,  and  a  drizzling  rain  added  to  our  mis- 
ery as  we  thought  of  the  morrow.  Although  we  were  obliged  to  sit 
up  all  night,  at  least  we  were  sheltered  from  the  cold  rain,  and  a  blaz- 
ing fire  of  logs  on  the  stone  hearth  imparted  a  somewhat  cheerful  glow 
to  the  surroundings.  Our  "  kind  "  host  informed  us  that  if  we  were 
disposed  to  invest  a  part  of  our  surplus  currenc}',  he  could  obtain  for 
us  some  home-brewed  beer.  Being  thus  disposed,  and  only  too  happy 
of  the  opportunity,  we  gave  him  the  greenbacks  and  he  shortly  returned 
with  a  good-sized  bucket  of  the  malt.  To  this  we  added  some  pepper- 
sauce  to  give  it  a  taste,  otherwise  it  would  be  as  flat  as  the  Dead 
Sea,  this  was  the  case  with  all  beer  brewed  in  the  Territory,  and 
inviting  the  "head  of  the  house''  to  imbibe  also,  we  sat  around  the 
fire  and  drank  the  beer  until  the  last  cupful  was  gone.  The  Mormon 
host  performed  his  part  of  the  undertaking,  and  never  flinched  at  a 
single  detail.  In  fact,  he  sat  up  with  us  all  night  long — whether  it 
was  from  "gentlemanly  politeness,"  love  of  the  beer,  or  distrust  of  the 
Gentiles  he  had  let  within  his  gates,  we  were  unable  to  fathom.  But 
true  it  was,  he  sat  with  us  by  the  fire,  occasionally  replenishing  it, 
until  the  gray  mists  of  the  morning. 

During  the  long  night  I  could  not  help  thinking  that  this  was 
Christmas  eve.     That  the  morrow  was  the  day  celebrated  all  over  the 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  353 

Christian  world  as  the  birthday  of  the  Redeemer.  My  thoughts  wandered 
to  my  home  in  the  far  East,  where  dwelt  the  loved  ones  of  my  heart. 
What  a  sun-burst  of  memory  poured  in  upon  me !  What  joys  that  day 
had  oft  times  unfolded  to  me !  What  boyish  delights  and  hopes  and 
fears  had  consecrated  that  one  day  of  all  the  year  and  embalmed  it  in  my 
memory !  And  the  love  and  beauty  that  clustered  about  it  in  my  early 
manhood  and  made  it  golden  with  the  dreams  of  hopeful  aspirations. 
Tenderness  and  sympathy,  and  the  gentleness  of  loved  ones  passed 
beyond  lifers  limits  who  had  made  it  a  day  of  kindly  offering  on  the 
altar  of  affection  now  clothed  it  with  the  sweet  glories  of  the  dream 
world.  'Twas  only  a  step  to  the  dear  old  home  through  the  soft,  still 
gate  of  sleep !  Why  could  I  not  dream  I  w^as  there,  and  feel  their 
kisses  upon  my  cheek  as  of  old?  Alas,  I  was  faraway.  Great  mount- 
ain barriers  divided  us.  Three  thousand  miles  separated  us.  I  was 
away  off,  locked  in  the  mountains  in  an  inhospitable  land,  where  even 
the  luxury  of  a  bed  was  denied  on  that  night !  But  the  gray  dawn  of 
the  morning  came  at  last,  and  with  it  a  surprise.  I  heard  the  beating 
of  a  drum,  the  shrill  notes  of  a  fife,  the  firing  of  guns  and  the  loud 
shouts  of  men  and  boys.  What  could  it  mean  ?  Was  it  a  call  to  arms  ? 
Had  the  w^ily  savage  chosen  that  dark  morning  for  an  attack  upon  the 
sleeping  town  ?  Were  we  to  engage  in  battle  in  Hound  Valley  with 
the  white  man's  foe  ?  Were  they  already  at  its  gates  ?  No !  What, 
then,  means  this  call  to  arms  from  fife  and  drum  ?  Ah,  my  Gentile  friend- 
it  is  the  sound  of  the  Mormon  boys  of  Round  Yalley  ushering  in  the 
dawn  of  Christmas!  They  are  marching  around  the  hollow  square 
with  drum  and  fife ;  they  are  firing  a  salute  at  each  household ;  they 
are  singing  the  songs  that  are  now  being  sung  by  Christian  millions  all 
over  the  world;  they  are  ringing  the  bells  and  shouting  their  loud 
huzzas,  and  their  notes  shall  be  borne  over  the  distant  mountain  tops 
on  the  electric  chords  of  sympathy  to  swell  the  anthems  of  praise  and 
rejoicing — the  chorus  of  the  worl'd  song  that  the  Redeemer  liveth ! 
Three  thousand  miles  from  home,  and  three  hundred  from  a  base  line 
of  civilization,  in  the  very  heart  of  the  mountains,  and  in  the  midst  of 
the  Avild  haunts  of  Indian  foes,  these  Mormon  boys  are  celebratmg 
the  birth  of  Christ.  Ko  wonder  that  we  bought  a  tub  of  beer,  the 
bucket  was  too  small,  and  when  they  came  to  "our"  house  singing 
their  Chirstmas  carols,  drank  with  them  the  early  morning  toast  of  a 
"  Merry  Christmas  to  all  the  Mormon  boys  of  Round  Valley." 


354  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIITS. 

It  was  a  dark,  dreary  morning  as  we  left  Round  Yalle\\  after  a 
late  breakfast.  The  heavens  were  lowering  and?  gave  promise  of  a 
storm  which  burst  upon  us  when  but  a  few  miles  on  our  journey.  We 
were  in  a  mountain  country,  and  as  we  climbed  the  uplands  the  storm 
increased.  It  was  useless  to  turn  back  to  a  place  that  afforded  no 
means  for  rest  or  sleep,  and  so  we  concluded  to  push  on  in  the  hojie 
that  the  elements  would  soon  cease  their  warfare.  Our  hope,  however, 
was  vain.  The  storm  of  rain  soon  changed  to  a  gale.  The  nearest 
shelter  was  Fort  Union,  at  least  thirty  miles  distant.  We  put  our 
blooded  steeds  to  their  full  mettle,  and  swept  along  the  hard  mountain 
road  with  a  celerity  seldom  known  in  that  country.  Thirty  miles  in 
an  open  buggy  exposed  to  a  torrent  of  rain  was  surelj"  bad  enough, 
but  when  the  storm  changes  to  a  gale,  and  to  the  rain  is  added  first  a 
shower  of  hailstones  of  such  size  as  to  sting  us  severely  and  madden 
our  horses,  and  to  the  hail  is  added  a  downfall  of  snow,  and  withal  a 
storm  of  wind  that  nearly  blew  the  breath  out  of  our  bodies,  what 
would  you  say  ?  When  high  up  the  tall  mountain  side  we  met  these 
elements  altogether,  rain,  hail,  sleet  and  snow,  borne  upon  us  by  a  driv- 
ing; wind  that  chilled  the  marrow  in  our  bones  and  froze  the  greatcoats 
on  our  bodies  as  stiff  as  sole  leather,  and  as  if  to  add  greater  fright  to 
our  already  maddened  animals  and  to  make  tlie  whole  matter  more 
uncomfortable  for  us,  we  suddenly  penetrated  a  storm  burst  as  we 
dashed  along  over  the  mountain's  crest.  Forked  and  sheeted  lightning 
played  all  around  us,  enveloping  us  at  times  almost  within  its  flaming 
folds,  and  shooting  thence  in  zig-zag  lines  far  down  the  mountain  sides, 
leaving  a  scorched  and  blackened  line  of  shivered  rocks  and  trees  in  its 
pathway  from  the  clouds.  Peal  after  peal  of  thunder  reverberated 
from  summit  to  base,  rolling  as  it  were  from  rocky  towers  and  minarets 
to  cavernous  depths  far  below.  It  was  a  battle  among  the  clouds,  and 
heaven's  artillery  was  shaking  the  rocks  from  their  firm  base.  1  had 
heard  the  roU  of  infantry  and  the  voice  of  the  deep-mouthed  cannon 
during  the  dark  struggle  between  the  sections,  as  the  tide  of  conflict 
swept  over  the  embattled  plains ;  but  never  before  had  my  ears  been 
assailed  with  such  deafening  roars  as  met  them  there. 

Mn'  fear  each  moment  was,  that  our  frightened  animals  would  get 
beyond  the  control  of  the  strong  hand  that  held  and  guided  them,  and 
in  their  mad  fury  dash  headlong  into  a  chasm  beneath.  Pelted  by 
hailstones,  deafened   by  thunder  and   dazed  by  the  vivid   glare  of 


ECHOES    FKOM   THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  355 

lightning,  they  bounded  along  with  the  speed  of  the  wind,  which  was 
now  our  furious  companion.  But,  encouraged  by  the  voice  they  knew  so 
well,  they  kept  the  I'oad  in  safety.  Torrents  of  rain  fell  and  seemed  to 
freeze  as  it  would  fall  upon  us,  so  intense  was  the  cold  in  the  driving 
gale.  I  was  compelled  to  take  off  my  hat  and  hold  it  over  my  mouth 
to  keep  the  breath  in  my  body,  so  fearful  was  the  wind  that  swept 
along  that  mountain  road.  But  as  we  descended  the  storm  decreased 
in  violence,  the  thunder  more  distant  and  the  glare  of  the  lightning 
less  vivid.     But  the  rain  and  the  driving  sleet  remained  our  close  com- 


THE   STORM    IN   THE    MOUNTAINS. 

panions.     Our  smoking  steeds  had  reached  the  plains,  and  a  dot  upon 
its  surface  indicated  that  Fort  Union  was  not  many  miles  distant. 

With  renewed  energy  our  brave  animals  sped  along  without  whip 
or  spur,  as  if  instinct  with  the  knowledge  that  food,  shelter  and  rest 
were  near  at  hand.  The  bridge  was  over,  the  moat  and  the  great  gates 
of  the  fort  were  wide  open  to  receive  us,  for  the  hospitable  keeper  had 
already  seen  us  from  its  ramparts  as  we  struggled  through  the  storm, 
and  hastened  to  open  its  portals  and  not  its  port  holes.  As  we  drove 
within  the  enclosure  and  the  drawbridge  was  withdrawn  and  the  great 


356  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

gates  swung  back  in  their  places,  it  appeared  to  us  as  if  we  had  reached 
"a  city  of  refuge  within  the  wilderness/'  and  our  shelter  was  secure. 
Our  garments  were  so  frozen  and  our  limbs  so  stiffened  from  the  severe 
and  perilous  ride  through  the  mountain  storm  that  we  were  unable  to 
alight  without  assistance.  A  blazing  fire  greeted  our  benumbed 
limbs,  and  soon  we  were  able  to  remove  our  greatcoats,  so  frozen 
with  sleet  and  mud  that  they  stood  alone  like  sacks  filled  with  grain. 
The  room  was  filled  with  vapor  from  our  drying  garments  when  our 
kind  host  made  his  appearance,  having  remained  to  see  that  our  ani- 
mals were  properly  housed  and  fed.  His  first  remark  was  that  which 
only  those  in  our  condition  could  fully  appreciate : 

"  Gentlemen,"  said  he,  "  you  seem  to  have  had  a  hard  drive  of  it. 
Ton  are  cold  and  wet,  and  I  think  that  a  little  hot  whisky  and  water 
would  do  you  good.  I  have  some  "  valley  tan,"  if  you  prefer  it,  and 
likewise  a  barrel  of  States  whisky,  which  I  traded  from  a  party  of  emi- 
grants this  fall,  and  if  you  will  have  it,  I  will  get  it  here  in  a  minute." 

I  have  heard  many  eloquent  speeches  at  some  of  the  finest  and 
grandest  banquets  that  art  and  skill  and  wealth  combined,  could  devise, 
but  I  think  that  was  the  most  hospitable  and  eloquent  of  them  all ! 
We  did  not  hesitate  to  reply  that  we  were  of  the  same  opinion,  and 
that,  wet  to  the  skin  as  we  were,  with  no  change  of  garments,  a  little 
of  the  "  States  "  whisky  would  be  of  inestimable  service  in  thawing  us 
out  and  in  preventing  cold  in  our  system. 

In  an  instant  he  was  gone,  and  in  a  few  more  back  again,  with  a 
quart  pitcher  filled  to  the  brim  with  the  amber  liquor.  In  a  moment 
more  he  had  secured  from  the  kitchen  another  pitcher,  filled  with 
boiling  hot  water,  which,  together  with  a  bowl  of  white  sugar  and  the 
necessary  glasses  and  spoons,  he  set  on  a  table  before  us,  and,  leaving  us 
to  ourselves,  bade  us  partake  to  our  hearts'  content. 

Shall  I  ever  forget  that  moment  when,  with  stiffened  and  benumbed 
fingers,  I  began  to  mix  a  draught  fit  for  the  gods  ?  Putting  the  sugar 
into  the  glass  and  dissolving  it  with  the  hot  water,  I  poured  in  a  gill, 
at  least,  perhaps  more,  of  the  whisky,  and  then,  filling  the  glass  to  the 
level  brim  with  the  hot,  steaming  water,  and  stirring  it  briskly  for  a 
moment,  I  swallowed  the  draught  with  the  same  avidity  displayetl  by 
"  Quilp,"  the  renowned  character  of  Dickens. 

My  companion  performed  the  same  laudable  undertaking  at  the 
same  time,  and  soon  after  we  repeated  the  operation  and  began  to 


J 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  357 

thoroughly  warm  the  inner  man  and  send  the  life-blood  dancing  through 
our  veins.  The  fire  warmed  us,  the  liquor  cheered  us,  our  wet  gar- 
ments began  to  dry,  and  when,  an  hour  afterward,  we  were  invited  to 
dinner,  our  ravenous  appetites  caused  us  shame  and  confusion.  There 
was  at  that  time  not  a  human  habitation  between  Round  Yalley  and 
Fort  Union,  and  not  a  morsel  had  crossed  our  lips  since  leaving  the 
former  place.  We  were,  therefore,  sadly  in  need  of  food,  and  ate  so 
heartily  that  we  felt  obliged  to  offer  excuses  to  our  kind  Mormon  host. 
Not  a  word  would  he  have,  however,  but  piled  our  plates  full  again 
and  again,  until  the  craving  was  all  gone.  We  then  returned  to  the 
bright  fire  in  the  sitting-room,  and,  filling  our  pipes,  engaged  in  friendly 
conversation  until  the  hour  of  retiring  arrived.  Oh,  the  comfort  of  the 
clean,  white  bed  that  night!  We  had  not  slept  for  forty-eight  hours, 
and  our  slumber  was  sweet  and  profound.  And  thus  we  closed  that 
Christmas  da}^  in  the  distant  mountains,  thankful  to  the  Father  of  all 
mercies  for  His  watchful  care  and  providence.  Before  retiring  we 
consulted  as  to  our  future  movements,  and  concluded  to  remain  at  the 
fort  until  the  storm  abated  its  fury.  What  was  our  glad  surprise  on 
awakening  in  the  morning  to  behold  the  sunshine  streaming  in  through 
the  window  panes.  The  air  was  cold  and  crisp,  and  the  ground  frozen 
hard  as  we  pursued  our  journey  to  Fillmore  Cit}'^,  distant  fifty  miles, 
and  the  nearest  settlement  southward. 

After  breakfast  that  morning  what  was  my  delight  and  surprise 
to  find  my  greatcoat  nicely  cleailed  and  perfectly  dry.  The  beautiful 
daughter  of  our  host  had  performed  that  labor  of  love,  and  I  felt  it 
my  dut}^  to  offer  her  a  recompense.  Not  a  cent  would  she  receive  for 
the  kind  act ;  but  on  ray  return  to  Salt  Lake  City  I  purchased,  at  a 
cost  of  $15,  the  handsomest  lady's  workbox  I  could  find,  filled  with  all 
the  intricate  details  of  a  woman's  workshop,  and  transmitted  it  with 
m}'  profoundest  thanks  for  the  comfort  she  bestowed  on  me  by  that 
kind  attention. 

We  were  likewise  greatly  surprised  at  the  refusal  of  the  host  to 
receive  a  proper  consideration  for  our  entertainment.  Although  we 
insisted,  he  positively  refused  to  accept  a  return  for  all  his  kind  hospi- 
tality. We  were  amazed  at  his  generosity,  but  were  enabled  to  requite 
him  in  a  more  substantial  way.  The  fort  was  not  on  the  immediate 
line  of  the  mail  route,  and  letters  and  express  packages  had  to  be  sent 
by  special  messenger  from  Round  Valley  once  a  week.     Although  it 


358  ECHOES    FEOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

lengthened  the  route  to  some  extent,  we  made  an  order  changmg  the 
same  so  as  to  include  Fort  Union,  and  thereafter  the  hospitable  Mor- 
mon received  his  mail  and  express  matter  three  "times  a  week  as  the 
coach  rolled  by.  It  always  carried  "  a  mail  bag  "  for  Fort  Union,  as  a 
remembrance  of  his  kindness  toward  the  half  frozen  strangers  he  let 
within  his  gates  that  stormy  Christmas  day.  "We  wish  to  say  also 
that  his  hospitable  acts  were  performed  without  the  knowledge  of  our 
relations  to  the  United  States  Government.  They  were  extended  to 
two  strangei's  from  Salt  Lake  City,  journeying  southward  to  the  settle- 
ment of  St.  George  on  what  he  suppposed  to  be  private  business. 
We  had  especial  reasons  for  keeping  our  indentit}^  unknown,  as  we 
were  on  a  tour  of  observation  at  the  instance  of  the  Government.  I 
mention  this  fact  because  we  were  so  deepl}^  impressed  with  the  differ- 
ence of  our  reception  and  entertainment  at  his  hospitable  abode,  and 
at  Round  Valley.  Had  the  postmaster  at  Round  Valley  have  known 
my  relations  with  himself  and  the  postoffice  department,  I  doubt  not 
he  would  have  given  us  the  best  bed  in  his  house,  though  he  made  one 
of  his  wives  thereby  sleep  in  the  rain.  Such  was  his  selfish  nature.  I 
never  saw  in  all  my  travels  through  Utah  a  more  happy  or  brighter  look- 
ing family  than  that  at  Fort  Union,  and  though  nearly  twenty  yeai-s 
have  elapsed  since  I  left  its  bastions,  moats  and  casemates,  I  remember 
it  all  as  if  it  occurred  but  yesterday. 

The  drive  to  Fillmore  City  was  the  most  pleasant  of  all,  save  that 
of  the  first  day  out  of  Salt  Lake  City  before  reaching  Provo.  The 
road  was  hard,  the  air  crisp,  and  the  life-blood  bounded  through  our 
viens  with  an  impetus  bom  of  true  vigor  and  health.  !N^ot  the  least 
trace  or  ill  effects  of  the  fearful  storm  through  which  we  had  passed 
on  the  previous  day  remained  in  our  system  to  remind  us  of  our 
painful  experience.  The  warm  fire,  the  good  food,  the  splendid  rest, 
and  withal  the  hot  steaming  whisky  and  water  so  thoughtfully  and 
generoush^  provided  by  our  host  (one  of  Nature's  noblemen)  together 
with  our  own  vigorous  constitutions  and  plethora  of  life  blood, 
prevented  even  the  semblance  of  that  popular  evil,  "a  cold  in  the 
head."  Xot  an  ache  or  a  pain  to  mar  the  glorious"  exliilaration  of  our 
southward  journey  !  How  we  sped  along  in  the  glad  sunshine  beneath 
the  shadow  of  the  great  mountains  !  All  our  cares  were  forgotten  in 
the  glory  of  our  surroundings  !  We  were  j'oung  men  with  life's 
fortunes  all  before  us,  away  off  in  the  distance  like  the  vista  of  valley 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  359 

and  mountain  through  which  we  travelled  in  continual  intoxication 
and  fever  of  reason.  The  wine  of  youth  painted  the  joys  of  young  ideas 
on  our  minds  in  the  warm  glowing  colors  which  fancy  spread  of  all 
that  was  yet  unknown.  Could  that  veil  have  been  lifted  what  would 
we  not  have  seen  ?  JSTow  the  storm  and  the  rain  were  all  forgotten  in 
the  glorious  sunshine  that  made  the  world  all  too  exquisite.  Our  very 
animals  partook  of  the  hour's  inspiration,  and  released  from  the  fetters 
of  the  storm,  bounded  along  as  if  in  harmony  with  our  thoughts.  We 
were  in  the  Indian  country,  and  no  town  or  village  or  human  habita- 
tion enlivened  that  long*  stretch  of  fiftv  miles.  We  met  but  two  living 
objects  all  the  way.  One  a  man  on  horseback,  the  other  alone  solitary 
gray  wolf  which,  gaunt  and  starved,  crossed  our  path  in  search  of 
food,  and,  as  if  in  the  agony  of  desperation,  stood  still  and  gazed  at 
us,  not  sixty  yards  from  where  we  passed.  The  natural  instinct  of 
man  to  slay  a  wild  animal  momentarily  unchecked,  caused  me  to  raise 
my  rifle  to  my  shoulder  with  deadly  aim.  Instantly  the  thought  came 
over  me  :  "  It  is  the  sole  living  thing  we  have  thus  far  met !  Let  it 
live,  the  world  is  big  enough  for  both  ! " 

The  man  on  horseback  passed  us  a  little  later.  He  did  not  so 
much  as  return  our  passing  salute.  Perhaps  he  was  distrustful  of  us 
in  that  remote  spot  of  the  wilderness.  There  were  two  of  us  and  both 
armed.  He  likewise  was  armed,  and  he  held  his  rifle  across  his  saddle 
bow  as  he  passed  in  silence.  I  turned  in  my  seat  and  looked  back 
upon  him.  His  head  was  likewise  turned  upon  his  horse  toward  us, 
and  he  never  removed  his  gaze  until  we  passed  out  of  sight.  It  was 
nothing  unusual,  however,  it  was,  in  fact  a  custom  of  the  country; 
neither  of  us  wished  to  be  shot  in  the  back.  But  the  gray  wolf  was 
the  more  companionable  of  the  two  and  I  was  glad  I  did  not  take  its 
life. 

As  we  had  made  an  early  start  that  morning,  and  the  day  was 
bright  and  the  roads  fine,  we  made  rapid  pace  and  arrived  at  Fillmore 
City  about  mid-afternoon.  My  companion  wishing  to  attend  to  some 
business  of  his  own,  connected  with  his  mail  route,  separated  from  me 
and  I  did  not  again  see  him  until  we  met  at  supper  at  the  hotel.  In 
the  meantime,  however,  I  was  not  idle,  but  went  about  viewing  the 
late  capital  of  Utah  Territory,  bearing  the  name  of  one  of  our  honored 
Presidents,  and  attending  to  my  own  delegated  duties.  The  county  in 
which  Pillmore  City  is  situated  is  named  Millard,  and  thus   the  whole 


360  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

name  of  the  ex-President  has  been  grafted  upon  Utah  topographv. 
This  settlement  was  the  largest  at  that  time  of  any  on  the  whole  route 
after  leaving  Salt  Lake  City,  and  I  was  told  that  formerly  the  popula- 
tion was  larger  than  at  that  time,  of  course,  when  it  was  the  capital  of 
the  Territory,  containing  the  public  offices. 

After  resting  all  night  in  a  comfortable  bed  and  enjoying  a  good 
breakfast  in  the  morning,  we  renewed  our  journey,  stopping  briefly  at 
the  intervening  settlements  of  Corn  Creek  and  Meadow  Creek,  and 
reached  Beaver  City  before  nightfall.  The  county  again  assumed  the 
aspect  of  cultivated  soil,  and  farms  and  gardens  greeted  us  on  our 
approach  to  the  towns.  Beaver  City  I  found  to  be  a  place  of  consider- 
able importance,  and  the  center  of  a  large  farming  region  as  well  as  a 
broad  and  prolific  spiritual  fold.  There  were  quite  a  number  of  Mor- 
mon settlements  some  distance  from  the  direct  line  of  travel  on  both 
sides  of  the  valley,  and  the  country  itself  was  cultivated  to  a  higher 
degree  of  excellence  than  any  we  had  seen  since  leaving  the  vicinity  of 
Salt  Lake  City.  And  this  was  the  case  from  here  all  the  way  to  St. 
George.  At  Beaver  City  I  met  and  was  introduced  to  its  leading 
citizen,  the  "Bishop  of  Beaver,"  I  was  very  well  impressed  with  both 
his  speech  and  manner.  While  quite  dignified  in  his  appearance,  and 
evidently  possessed  of  great  force  of  character,  he  was  not  like  most  of 
tbem  in  similar  authority  whom  I  had  met  in  my  long  journey.  He 
was  not  shy  of  Gentile  strangers,  at  least  he  gave  no  evidence  of  such 
a  characteristic  during  our  intercourse.  One  the  contrar}'^  his  manner 
was  open,  frank  and  free,  and  his  speech  was  pleasent.  He  was  known 
everywhere  as  the  best  business  man  of  all  the  prophets.  Coadjutors, 
and  the  city  of  Beaver  and  surroundings  bore  evidence  of  that  faet. 
A  stirring,  active  man  himself,  he  compelled  all  within  his  control  to  be 
likewise.  There  were  no  idlers,  even  the  women  performed  their 
share  of  labor.  He  had  agoodh'  number  of  wives,  and  all  were  engaged 
in  some  occupation.  He  invited  me  into  his  workshops,  and  I  saw  them 
all  at  their  daily  labor. .  Some  were  spinning,  others  weaving,  and 
a  number  were  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  cloth  fabrics  for  the 
market.  They  were  all  silent  and  strictly  attentive  to  their  labors, 
and  did  not  look  up  from  their  work  on  the  entrance  of  a  stranger, 
evincing  the  usual  curiosity  of  their  sisters  of  the  "outside  world." 
The  room  was  on  the  ground  floor  of  a  building  attached  to  his  house- 
hold, liffht  and  well  ventilated,  and  I  think  there  must  have  been  at 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  361 

least  twenty  women  employed,  but  they  were  not  all  wives — at  least 
not  all  his  own  waves,  as  I  was  afterward  informed.  The  most  of  his 
wives  were  among  them,  however,  thus  engaged,  perhaps  some  were 
his  daughters,  but  of  this  I  can  not  confidently  speak,  as  I  was  not 
informed.  There  were  likewise  scattered  through  the  town  quite  a 
number  of  workshops  for  the  men  engaged  in  various  branches  of 
industry.  All  the  people  of  this  settlement  whom  I  met  appeared  to  be 
contented,  if  not  happy,  and  the  whole  place  bore  an  air  of  activity  and 
prosperit}'-, 

I  have  said  the  name  of  the  settlement  was  Beaver  City.  Its 
origin  was  not  unfolded  to  me,  but  its  cognomen  was  not  inappropriate 
with  that  industrious  little  mason,  for  the  people  that  I  saw  "  were  all 
at  work  like  beavers." 

We  remained  with  the  Bishop  that  night,  and  hastily  resumed  the 
road  in  the  morning.  St.  George,  the  first  settlement  in  Southern 
Utah,  was  close  to  the  Arizona  line,  and  distant  from  Beaver  more  than 
a  hundred  miles. 

As  the  weather  was  fair  and  the  roads  good,  we  made  rapid  prog- 
ress, stopping  at  each  town  or  settlement  on  the  way.  At  various 
points  along  our  journey  it  appeared  to  be  studded  with  thick  settle- 
ments. We  were  now  so  far  southward  that  a  warm  sun  greeted  us 
and  the  climate  was  very  salubrious.  There  were  many  acres  under  a 
state  of  fine  cultivation,  and  farms,  gardens  and  orchards  were  to  be 
seen  surrounding  the  settlements. 

On  the  second  day  we  reached  St.  George,  having  passed  through 
the  village  of  Greenville,  Buckhorn,  Parowan,  Paragonah,  Summit, 
Cedar  City,  Shirts  Creek,  Kanara,  Bellevue,  Virgin  City,  Toqueville 
and  Harrisburg.  There  were  others,  some  of  them  of  considerable 
size,  but  they  were  not  located  on  the  direct  line  of  the  road,  and  we 
could  not  spare  the  time  to  visit  them. 

St.  George  was  for  the  present  the  terminus  of  our  travel,  and 
here  we  rested  for  a  brief  period,  recruiting  for  our  homeward  journey. 

Our  return  trip  was  of  course  more  rapid  than  our  going.  The 
object  for  which  we  had  made  the  long  journey  was  attained,  and  we 
were  now  ready  "  to  return  in  peace  "  from  this  summer  land  of  flowers 
to  the  snow-locked  lake  beneath  the  giant  Wahsatch,  where  frosted 
rosebuds  are  carved  upon  the  wintry  window-panes.  A  handshake  and 
good-bye  to  the  good  Bishop  of  Beaver,  after  our  noonday,  meal,  and 


362  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNT AlJfS. 

then  a  rapid  ride  through  Meadovr  and  Corn  Creeks,  brought  us  back  to 
Fillmore  City  long  after  the  lights  began  to  twinkle  in  the  Mormon 
iiouseholds.  At  the  hotel  a  warm  supper  awaited  us,  and  we  ate  to 
the  sound  of  merrv^  music  that  occasionally  was  wafted  in  upon  us. 
This  was  the  New  Year  First  Xight,  and  a  gay  party  of  dancers  was 
holding  high,  carnival  at  the  Old  State  House.  In  fact,  a  Mormon 
ball  was  in  progress,  and  an  invitation  was  extended  to  us  to  attend. 
After  our  long  journey,  exposed  as  we  had  been  to  the  severit}'^  of  the 
elements,  it  could  not  be  presumed  that  our  travel-stained  garments 
Avere  in  as  presentable  a  condition  as  when  more  than  half  a  month 
before  we  had  so  gaily  started  from  Salt  Lake  City.  Still  we  were 
going  to  that  ball  and  we  determined  that  apjiearances  should  not 
interfere  with  our  enjoyments. 

A  Mormon  ball  is  a  considerable  affair  at  times.  In  the  earlier 
times  it  was  their  chief  amusement,  and  when  I  was  temporarily  a  res- 
ident of  the  Territory  it  had  lost  none  of  its  interest  and  zest.  An 
invitation  extended  to  a  Gentile  to  attend  a  Mormon  ball  always  con- 
veyed the  idea  of  friendship  and  respect.  It  was  like  an  invitation  to 
breakfast.  If  they  wished  to  entertain  you  they  invited  you  to  a  late 
breakfast — saj'  9  o'clock  in  the  morning — and  not  to  a  late  dinner,  as 
is  the  usual  custom.  Their  state  balls,  if  they  may  be  so  called,  took 
the  place  of  dinners.  They  have  been  frequently  given  in  honor  of 
Gentiles.  Governor  Cummings  and  officers  of  General  Johnston's 
Arm}'^  of  Occupation  were  given  a  ball  in  honor  of  the  "peace"  that 
had  been  consummated  without  bloodshed.  The  city  authorities  gave 
a  ball  to  General  Conner  and  officere,  and,  later,  to  other  civil  officers 
of  the  Territory.  These  balls,  save  that  to  General  Conner,  were 
attended  bv  Briofham  Younff  and  wives,  the  elders  of  the  church 
within  call  and  the  chiefs  of  the  High  Council  with  their  wives  and 
grown  children.  The  gravest  would  lead  off  in  the  dance  of  a  great 
double  cotillion  and  be  the  first  to  throw  off  the  cares  of  thought,  and 
"no  minuet  or  other  jportuary  procession  of  Gentiles  in  etiquette, 
tight  shoes  and  pinching  gloves,  but  spirited  and  scientific  displays  of 
"  French  Fours,"  Copenhagen,  jigs,  and  the  Virginia  Reel  in  their 
stead. 

When  I  was  at  Fillmore  City  on  the  way  southward,  I  had  occa- 
sion to  go  to  the  telegraph  office,  and  I  found  the  operators  to  be  two 
very  handsome  young  women,  very  tidily  dressed,  certainly  not  over 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUN^TAINS.  363 

eighteen  and  twenty  years  of  age,  the  daughters  of  a  prominent  Mor- 
mon resident  of  that  town.  They  were  both  remarkably  handsome 
girls  and  resembled  one  another  to  such  a  degree  I  thought  they  might 
be  twin  sisters.  Perhaps  they  were.  I  learned  they  were  to  become 
the  wives  of  a  prosperous  young  Mormon  who  had  wooed  them  both  at 
the  same  time.  This,  to  me,  who  at  tliat  time  had  not  been  long  in 
the  Territory,  and  not  familiar  with  its  custom,  seemed  so  singular  that 
it  made  quite  an  impression  on  my  mind.  As  sisters  they  both 
appeared  amiably  and  happily  disposed  toward  each  other.  How  long 
would  it  be,  as  wives  of  the  same  man,  before  the  hair  pulling  'would 
begin,  each  endeavoring  to  obtain  the  mastery  of  the  other  ?  At  the 
ball  tliat  nio;ht,  I  beheld  these  ladies  under  the  escort  of  their  future 
husband.  They  were  handsomely  attired,  much  more  so  than  the 
other  young  ladies  present,  and  appeared  to  be  not  only  well-disposed 
toward  each  other,  but  really  attached  to  the  young  man  whom  they 
were  about  to  wed  at  no  distant  day.  To  them  he  gave  his  undivided 
attention,  and  I  noticed  this  peculiarity:  When  dancing  with  one,  the 
other  did  not  seek  another  partner  but  waited  as  a  "wall  flower" 
until  the  next  cotillion,  when  it  would  be  her  turn.  Having  been  made 
acquainted  with  them  on  my  previous  visit,  I  joined  the  one  who  was 
waiting,  and  asked  her  to  become  my  partner  in  the  dance.  Kow 
what  do  you  think  was  her  reply  ?  At  home  in  the  far  East  q,  young 
lady  when  thus  addressed  in  a  ball  room  might  have  declined  or 
rejoined  that  she  would  go  and  ask  her  mother  or  her  father  or  big 
brother  or  her  escort  if  alone,  provided  she  felt  a  delicacy  in  whirling 
through  the  mazes  of  the  dance  with  a  comparative  stranger.  But 
this  young  lady  to  whom  I  had  already  been  introduced,  and  who 
knew,  from  the  business  transacted  through  her  mediumship  over  the 
wires,  that  I  was  presumably  a  gentleman  from  my  connection  with 
the  Government,  told  me  in  the  most  innocent  way  imaginable  to  "  go 
and  ask  the  Bishop !  "  I  was  very  anxious  to  become  her  partner  so 
that  I  might  proudly  say  that  I  had  danced  with  the  prettiest 
Mormon  girl  I  had  seen  in  the  Territory;  but  how  was  I  to  get  at  the 
Bishop  who  was  himself  a  merry  dancer  on  the  floor?  I  suggested 
this  obstacle  to  the  maiden,  but  she  was  obdurate,  and,  while 
endeavoring  to  solve  the  matter  in  my  own  mind,  the  dance  ended  and 
and  her  future  lord  came  and  carried  her  off. 

All  of  this  was  very  new  to  me  then,  but  in  time  I  became  better 
acquainted  with  their  manner  of  doing  things.     I  afterward  learned 


364 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAISS. 


that  the  "  head  of  the  church  "  and  not  the  "  head  of  the  family  "  con- 
trolled the  actions  of  the  young  ladies,  even  at  balls  and  pleasure  par- 
ties. That  at  Salt  Lake  City  not  even  a  hall  could  be  rented  for  a  ball 
nor  the  invitations  issued  without  consulting-  Briorham  Younff,  and  that 
so  far  was  his  personal  supervision  extended  over  all  things,  before  the 
beginning  of  a  courtship,  even,  his  consent  must  be  obtained. 

We  did  not,  however,  leave  the  ballroom  that  night  without  a 
dance.    After  a  while  the  good  Bishop  came  to  where  we  were  seated 


"YOU    MUST    ASK    THE    BISHOP." 

and  inquired  if  we  would  not  engage  in  the  dance  ?  My  companion 
who  was  very  fond  of  the  amusement  and  well  skilled  in  the  art, 
immediatelv  signified  his  desire  and  I,  whose  ardor  had  somewhat 
cooled  from  my  former  venture,  was  compelled  out  of  politeness  to  do 
likewise  and  in  a  few  moments  we  had  "  partners  for  the  dance." 
They  wei-e  not,  however,  the  two  young  ladies  who  had  fascinated  us 
in  the  early  part  of  the  evening ;  they  were  mature  matrons,  at  least 
such  could  be  said  of  my  partner.  But  what  she  lacked  in  youthful 
appearance  was  more  than  compensated  by  her  skill  and  agility.  I 
never  was  much  of  a  Terpsichorean,  but  she  gave  me  all  the  amuse- 
ment I  wished  on  that  occasion.    A  man  of  250  pounds  avordu|x>is  is 


ECHOES    FItOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  365 

not  cut  out  for  a  dancer,  and  when,  finally,  after  the  second  "engage- 
ment," I  sat  down  beside  her,  streaming  with  perspiration,  wilhng 
henceforth  to  relinquish  all  claims  for  future  "  engagements  "  with  this 
"  Sylph  of  the  Mountains,"  I  vividly  recalled  a  former  experience  at  a 
German  ball  in  the  hall  of  the  National  Guards  of  Philadelphia  some 
3' ears  before,  which  ''the  boys"  in  violence  of  all  rules  of  politeness 
would  persist  in  calling  a  "dutch  dance."  While  visiting  that  city  on 
professional  business,  and  during  a  stroll  one  evening  in  company  with 
friends — young  men  of  my  own  age — we  chanced  to  pass  that  famous 
hall  whence  proceeded  the  sound  of  music  and  the  merrj'^  dance. 
Accepting  an  invitation  "  merely  to  look  on  "  we  ascended  the  broad 
stairway  and  were  ushered  into  the  large  assembly  room  where  a  great 
German  Ball  was  in  progress.  It  was  not  long  before  the  spirit  of  the 
bright  scene  so  impressed  us  that  we,  too,  were  on  the  floor  waltzing 
away  at  a  furious  rate.  My  partner  was  a  strong,  stout  German  maiden 
of  perhaps  twenty-five  summers,  fair-haired  and  blue-eyed  and  as  fond 
of  the  art  as  she  was  accomplished  in  its  intricate  mazes.  The  music 
was  inspiring,  and  we  waltzed  merrily  over  the  polished  floor  back  and 
forth  until  I  began  to  feel  that  a  little  rest  and  refreshment  would  be 
enjoyable.  However,  my  fair  companion  gave  no  sign  of  relaxation 
and  gallantly  compelled  me  to  "on  with  the  dance."  After  sweeping 
over  the  floor  once  more  its  whole  lenofth  and  returninf?,  I  suoforested 
that  perhaps  I  was  detaining  her  too  long  in  the  wild  waltz  and  she 
had  better  sit  down  and  rest  awhile !  That  deep  A'^olce  still  rings  in 
mv  ears  as  she  replied,  entirely  unmoved,  in  her  rich  German  accent : 
"lish  nod  dired  yit!"  On  went  the  stirring  music  of  the  waltz  and 
on  w^ent  both  of  us,  as  she  took  a  tighter  grip  for  the  next  spiral  sweep 
among  the  gay  throng.  One  by  one  the  waltzing  couples  disappeared, 
while  others  took  their  places,  but  she  showed  not  the  least  intention 
of  resigning.  I  again  suggested  that  it  would  be  better  for  her  to  take 
a  rest,  and  again  came  that  deep  guttural  reply :  "  I  ish  nod  dired  yit ! " 
The  case  was  hopeless.  I  think  she  purposed  to  dance  all  night, 
or  at  least  as  long  as  the  continuous  music  lasted,  which  I  thought 
would  never  end.  I  was  wicked  enough  to  wish  that  one  or  more  of 
the  musicians  would  fall  from  their  perch  in  a  fit.  But  no  such  relief 
came,  and  finally,  with  the  perspiration  streaming  all  over  and  the 
breath  nearly  gone  out  of  ray  body,  I  told  the  fair  creature  that  if  she 
was  not  tired  "  I  was,"  and  intended  to  sit  down.     She  insisted  on  one 


366  ECHOES   FROM    THE    ROCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

more  whirl,  but  I  had  enough  of  that  German  ball,  and  genth'  waltzed 
her  to  a  seat,  whence,  after  a  few  moments'  rest,  we  proceeded  "from 
labor  to  refreshment." 

I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  my  Mormon  partner  was  the  prototype 
of  that  fair-haired  Saxon  girl.  I  do  not  think  she  had  her  equal  on 
earth ;  at  the  end  of  that  long,  unceasing  waltz,  she  was  as  unruffled 
as  a  summer  breeze. 

Leaving  Fillmore  City  behmd  us  early  in  the  morning,  we 
hurried  rapidly  along,  meeting  with  no  incident  worthy  of  note  until 
we  reached  the  vicinity  of  Payson.  At  this  point  one  of  the  springs 
of  our  conveyance  became  detached,  and  we  were  compelled  to  await 
the  arrival  of  the  mail  coach.  I  was  left  nearly^  a  whole  afternoon  in 
company  with  the  Mormon  lady  of  the  household,  whom  I  found  to  be 
both  intelligent  and  communicative.  I  learned  much  that  afternoon 
of  the  "inner  life"  of  the  Mormon  people.  I  learned  also  that  the 
accident  to  our  conveyance  was  probably  the  means  of  preserving  our 
lives,  inasmuch,  as  had  it  not  occurred  we  would  have  pushed  forward 
and  attempted  to  ford  the  stream  beyond.  Had  we  have  done  so  we 
undoubtedly  would  have  been  swept  along  in  its  torrent.  The  recent 
rains  had  so  swollen  its  waters  that  fording  with  so  light  a  buggy  as 
ours  was  impossible.  Only  the  day  before  such  a  conveyance  was 
swept  awa}^  and  the  lives  of  the  two  occupants  lost.  In  fact,  we  found 
the  heavy  coach,  loaded  with  mail  and  passengers,  almost  lifted  from 
the  roadbed,  and  the  horses  bareh'  able  to  keep  their  feet,  so  swift  was 
the  swollen  stream. 

At  Provo  we  had  an  early  dinner.  There  I  met  for  the  first  time 
George  A.  Smith,  Brigham  Young's  first  counselor.  He  was  a  great 
man,  not  only  in  spiritual  affairs,  but  in  avoirdupois.  I  think  he 
weighed  375  pounds.  I  do  not  know  what  he  was  doing  there. 
Perhaps  he  had  been  sent  by  Brigham  to  ascertain  what  we  were 
about.  I  have  always  believed  he  set  a  little  sort  of  a  trap  on  our 
homeward  journey  from  that  place  to  catch  us  in  a  certain  thing,  the 
details  of  which  I  will  not  give,  but  if  so,  he  signally  failed.  The 
Mormons  were  always  engaged  in  that  business.  If  a  Gentile  came  to 
their  city  and  was  suspected  of  ulterior  designs,  a  careful  watch  was 
set  upon  him,  and  go  where  he  might,  his  footsteps  were  dogged  in  the 
most  secret  manner.  I  state  it  as  a  fact  that  upon  one  occasion  a 
stranger  was  followed  all  over  the  place  in  daylight  by  a  man  carr\^ing 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIN'S.  367 

a  board  on  his  shoulders  and  dressed  in  the  garb  of  a  common  work 
man.  At  night  other  means  were  provided.  He  was  one  of  their  most 
skillful  detectiv^es,  and  sometimes  was  arrayed  in  female  clothing.  I 
have  known  him  to  gain  entrance  to  the  offices  of  Gentile  lawyers  with 
a  basket  of  fruit  upon  his  arm,  disguised  as  a  pseudo-vender. 

We  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City  at  midnight,  and  I  retired  to  my 
couch  at  the  Townsend  House  to  dream  over  all  that  I  had  seen  in  my 
long  journey  through  Southern  Utah.  I  have  seen  many  of  those  vis- 
ions since  in  the  twilight  of  years  that  have  deepened  into  night  shad- 
ows. Dreams  that  have  breath  and  tears  and  torture  and  a  touch 
of  joy  that  divided  our  being,  whose  forms  and  shadows  were 
the  perfect  semblance  of  those  real  events  that  marked  our  way. 
"Where  are  all  those  forms  and  shadows  now?  and  what  of  their 
later  life  history  ?  It  can  not  be  that  all  are  gone  and  I  survive ! 
What  of  the  kind  host  at  Fort  Union?  Doth  he  still  gaze  from 
his  rampart  walls  upon  forlorn  travelers  strugglmg  through 
storms  afar  off,  to  warm  them  back  to  life,  or  hath  he  spread  his 
silent  tent  "  on  Fame's  eternal  camping-ground  "  ?  What  of  the  twin 
wives  of  Fillmore?  What  of  the  Bishop  of  Beaver — his  factories, 
workshops  and  busy  ways  ?  What  of  them  all  ?  I  know  not.  But  I 
do  know  that  the  mountains  are  still  there  in  their  splendor,  the  val- 
leys and  their  sparkling  streams ;  and  yonder  is  the  sunlight  gilding 
the  tall  church  spire,  and  I  know  it  is  the  same  sunlight  that  gilds 
their  snow-crowned  summits  with  its  ancient  glory.  And  it  seems 
to  me  as  if  'twere  but  one  step  from  there  to  the  glory  of  the  sun 
eternal. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

THB  MOUNTAIN  MEADOWS  MASSACRE  — A  COMPLETE  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  MURDER 
OF  OVER  ONE  HUNDRED  RICH  EMIGRANTS  FROM  ARKANSAS  ON  THEIR  WAY 
TO  CALIFORNIA,  BY  A  BAND  OF  MORMON  MILITIA  AND  INDIANS-BELIEVED 
TO  HAVE  BEEN  MURDERED  AT  THE  COMMAND  OF  BRIGHAM  YOTNG- 
YOUNGS  POSITIVE  KNOWLEDGE  OF  THE  CEIME-HIS  REPORT  AS  SUPERIN- 
TENDENT OF  INDIAN  AFFAIRS  IN  THE  TERRITORY  ATTRIBUTES  THE 
BLOODY  DEED  TO  THE  INDIANS,  WHEN  HE  KNOWS  THAT  THE  DARK  CRIME 
WAS  COMMITTED  BY  MORMONS  AT  HIS  BIDDING— THE  EMIGRANTS,  UNSUSPECT- 
ING, BETRAYED,  MURDERED  AND  PLUNDERED-THEIR  MANGLED  BODIES 
PERMITTED  TO  LIE  UNBURIED  TO  BE  DEVOURED  BY  WOLVES  AND  VULTURES- 
DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  WOMEN  AND  CHILDREN  FIRST,  AND  THE  MEN  AFTER- 
WARD—THE CONFESSION  AND  AFFIDAVIT  OF  BISHOP  KLINGEN  SiHTH- THE 
CONFESSION  OF  JOHN  D.  LEE-HIS  TRIAL  AND  EXECUTION  TWENTY-FIVE 
YEARS  AFTER  THE  CONFESSION  OF  THE  HEINOUS  CRIME-THRILLING  SCENES 
DESCRIBED. 

In  the  summer  of  1857  a  train  of  emigrants  from  Arkansas,  on 
their  way  to  California,  entered  Salt  Lake  City.  It  was  perhaps  the 
wealthiest  and  most  populous  train  that  ever  entered  the  valley,  bound 
for  the  new  El  Dorado.  It  numbered  nearly  one  hundred  and 
fifty  persons,  men,  women  and  children;  four  hundred  head  of 
cattle  and  seventy-five  horses.  It  was  a  rich  train  and  carried 
money,  jewelry,  household  goods,  pianos,  books  and  fireside  pen- 
ates,  with  which  to  add  comfort  and  beauty  to  their  new  homes 
on  the  Pacific.  They  were  told  that  snows  in  the  Sierras  would 
prevent  their  passage  by  the  northern  route,  and  they  therefore 
resolved  to  pass  down  through  the  southern  settlements  of  Utah, 
and  enter  California  by  the  southern  route. 

It  was  not  only  a  wealthy  and  populous  train,  but  a  highly  respect- 
able, peaceable  and  Christian  people,  frequently  holding  religious 
services. 

Hitherto  Salt  Lake  City  had  been  the  great  recruiting  station  on 
the  barren  road  to  California,  and  jaded  and  weary  trains  of  men  and 
animals  found  rest  and  recuperation  in  this  oasis  of  the  desert  high- 
way. 

To  their  great  surprise,  this  Arkansas  train  on  reaching  Salt  Lake 
City,  found  that  nothing  could  be  procured  from  the  Mormons  for  love 

388 


ECHOES    FROM  THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  369 

or  money.  Their  gold  and  silver,  their  cattle  nor  ought  they  possessed 
could  purchase  sufficient  food  to  keep  them  from  starvation.  Not 
only  were  they  denied  food,  but  rest.  They  were  peremptorily  ordered 
to  break  camp  on  the  Jordan  and  depart  from  Salt  Lake  City.  Wea- 
rily they  passed  down  through  the  villages  that  blossomed  at  the  foot 
of  the  Wahsatch,  each  proving  as  inhospitable  as  the  other.  The  corn 
had  ripened,  the  grain  had  all  been  harvested,  every  granary  was  filled 
to  repletion,  for  the  year  had  been  exceptionally  prolific,  yet  money 
had  lost  its  purchasing  power,  for  everywhere  food  was  denied.  At 
American  Fork,  Battle  Creek,  Provo,  Springville,  Spanish  Fork,  Pay- 
son,  Nephi  and  Fillmore  they  received  the  same  harsh  treatment,  and 
not  until  their  arrival  in  Cedar  City,  in  a  famished  condition,  were  they 
able  to  obtain  a  pound  of  grain  for  man  or  beast.  The  command  of 
authority  had  preceded  them.  The  second  in  command  of  the  church, 
George  A.  Smith,  the  Prophet's  first  counselor,  had  preached  to  the 
Mormons  in  every  settlement,  and  under  pain  of  excommunication  had 
forbidden  them  to  sell  food  or  grain  to  the  starving  emigrants.  At 
Cedar  City,  however,  they  managed  to  obtain  sixty  bushels  of  corn, 
which  they  had  ground  into  meal  at  the  mill,  and  pushed  on  to  the 
Mountain  Meadows  to  recruit  their  stock  ere  entering  the  desert. 

While  encamped  upon  its  grassy  knolls  at  Cane  Spring,  they  were 
suddenly  attacked  by  what  they  presumed  to  be  a  large  body  of  Indians, 
who  killed  ten  of  their  number  and  ran  off  their  grazing  stock.  But 
forming  a  cordon  of  their  wagons,  behind  which  they  fought  desper- 
ately, each  emigrant  being  well  armed,  for  five  days  they  kept  the 
enemy  at  bay.  Every  attempt  to  obtain  water  was  met  by  slaughter. 
Two  little  girls,  clothed  in  pure  white,  were  sent  down  to  the  spring. 
Hand  in  hand  they  proceeded  on  their  way — the  way  to  death — for 
their  tender  innocence  did  not  protect  them;  their  little  bodies  were 
riddled  with  bullets.  A  woman  attempting  to  milk  a  cow  that  had 
approached  their  enclosure  was  instantly  shot  to  death.  Unable  to 
succeed  by  assault,  these  pseudo-Indians  now  determined  upon  wicked 
strategy.  The  affidavit  of  the  apostate  Mormon  Bishop  Philip  Klin- 
gen  Smith  relates  that  a  regular  military  council  was  held  in  the  town 
of  Parowan,  at  which  were  present  President  Isaac  C.  Haight,  Colonel 
Dame,  commanding  the  Mormon  Militia  Regiment,  which  had  been 
called  out  to  perform  the  bloody  work;  Bishop  John  D.  Lee,  its 
major  ;  Bishop  Rigbee  and  Elder  George  A.  Smith.  John  D.  Lee  was 

21 


370  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

also  Indian  agent  for  Southern  Utah,  and  invited  bands  of  Pah-utes  and 
Pah-vents  to  accompany  him  in  the  cruel  butchery  to  take  place.  It 
was  planned  that  a  flag  of  truce  should  be  borne  by  white  men,  to  offer 
to  negotiate  terms  with  the  Indians,  and  thus  gain  the  confidence  of 
the  beseiged.  Accordingly  a  wagon  containing  white  men  with  a  white 
flag  made  its  appearance  before  the  lines  of  the  beseiged,  who,  behold- 
ing the  faces  of  white  men,  hailed  it  with  joy.  This  wagon  contained 
J.  C.  Haight,  John  D.  Lee,  Bishop  Rigbee  and  other  Mormon  digni- 
taries. They  stated  that  they  had  come  to  offer  aid  to  the  emigrants 
and  intercede  in  their  behalf  with  the  Indians,  if  thev  so  desired.  This 
offer  was  gladly  accepted,  and  the  Mormons  departed,  but  returned 
soon  after  with  what  they  called  the  ultimatum  of  the  savages — that  the 
emigrants  should  surrender  all  their  arms  and  property  and  return  to 
the  settlements  b}'  the  way  they  came.  In  case  they  accepted  these 
hard  conditions,  the  Mormons  promised  to  conduct  them  safely  to  the 
settlements.  Placing  implicit  reliance  in  the  good-will  and  intentions 
of  the  Mormons,  who  were  known  to  be  at  peace  ^vith  the  Indian  tribes, 
cruel  as  were  the  terms,  the}"  were  accepted  by  the  famished  emigrants, 
and,  surrendering  their  arms  and  all  other  property,  they  started  on 
their  march  to — the  grave !  The  arms,  the  wounded  and  the  children 
were  placed  in  two  wagons  driven  by  Mormons,  behind  them  came 
the  women  marching  in  single  file,  a  little  back  of  them,  the  starved 
and  worn  out  men,  and  immediately  in  their  rear  a  guard  of  sixty 
Mormon  militia.  A  mile  from  the  spring  the  road  ran  through  a 
thicket  of  scrub-oaks  and  man\"  rocks  intercepted  their  way.  Here,  by 
previous  concert,  lay  in  ambush  a  band  of  Indians.  At  this  moment 
Lee,  who  marched  between  the  wagons,  discharged  his  gun,  killing,  it 
is  said,  a  woman.  It  was  the  signal  for  the  massacre.  The  Indians 
sprang  suddenh"  from  behind  the  rocks  and  bushes,  and,  together  with 
the  Mormon  guard,  instantly  began  the  work  of  horrible  slaughter. 
Old  men  and  young  pitiable  women  with  babes  in  their  arms,  youths 
and  maidens,  all  were  alike  remorselessly  butchered  by  the  red  and 
white  demons.  Hell  hath  no  record  upon  its  avenging  pages  that  can 
compare  with  this  unpitying  crime.  The  prayers  of  men,  the  tears 
and  wails  of  women  fell  upon  unheeding  ears.  Sick  mothers,  too  ill 
to  leave  the  wagons,  were  dragged  therefrom  and  their  white  throats 
cut  from  ear  to  ear.  Little  girls  were  slaughtered  like  sheep  in  the 
shambles,  and   venerable  grey  haired  clergymen,  while  kneeling  in 


ksJ^^^i^m^ 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIlfS.  373 

prayer.  The  fury  of  perdition  seemed  to  seize  upon  the  slayers.  One 
young  man,  James  Pearce,  was  shot  by  his  own  father  for  protecting 
a  young,  beseeching  girl  who  lay  crouched  at  his  feet.  A  beautiful 
young  girl  threw  herself  into  the  arms  of  the  son  of  John  D.  Lee,  who 
attempted  to  shield  her  with  his  own  body.  His  inhuman  father  bent 
his  head  aside  and  plunged  his  dripping  dagger  in  her  young  heart. 
All  the  little  children  were  killed  save  those  "  too  young  to  remem- 
ber." Such  was  the  order,  and  fifteen  alone  survived,  the  eldest  but 
two  and  a  half  years  old. 

In  an  incredibly  short  space  of  time  128  men,  women  and  children, 
unarmed  and  defenseless,  weak,  weary,  worn  and  famished,  were 
butchered  by  these  inhuman  monsters  who,  under  the  guise  of  friend- 
ship and  human  sympathy,  had  decoyed  them  into  the  terrible  slaughter 
pen. 

Eight  days  after  the  massacre  witnesses  who  visited  the  field  of 
death,  and  who  testified  at  the  first  trial  of  Lee  in  1875,  saw  the  bodies 
of  the  slain  strewn  upon  the  ground  and  heaped  in  piles.  Some  were 
stabbed,  many  shot,  while  others,  principally  women,  had  their  throats 
cut.  The  wolves  and  ravens  had  lacerated  the  bodies  of  all  save  one, 
that  of  a  beautiful  well-formed  lady  with  long  flowing  locks.  For  some 
unexplained  reason  her  body  had  escaped  the  print  of  wolves'  teeth. 
A  single  bullet  had  pierced  her  side.  There  was  no  clothing  left  upon 
any  of  the  slain,  save  one  torn  stocking  which  clung  to  the  ankle  of 
one  of  the  men,  their  bloody  clothing  having  been  stripped  from  their 
mutilated  bodies,  and  sold  at  auction  by  order  of  the  church  authorities 
at  Cedar  City,  Utah.  Most  of  the  bodies  had  been  thrown  into  three 
piles,  distant  two  and  a  half  rods  from  each  other.  The  most  signifi- 
cant fact  connected  with  the  dead  was  that  not  a  scalp  was  taken. 
Those  acquainted  with  Indian  chararcter  know  full  well  their  savage 
instincts.  After  a  continuous  battle  of  five  days,  resulting  finally  in 
the  capture  and  slaughter  of  their  foe,  does  it  hold  to  reason  that  not  a 
scalp  should  be  taken  ?  The  inference  follows  swift  and  sure.  Had 
revenge  been  their  object,  scalps  would  have  been  taken  from  the  dead. 
As  it  was,  not  a  trace  of  the  scalping  knife  could  be  discovered. 

For  a  whole  year  this  revolting  crime  was  kept  secret,  locked  up 
within  the  mountain  walls  of  the  Territory.  "When  finally  their 
bodies  were  discovered  and  the  ghastly  deed  made  known,  it  sent  a 
thrill  of  horror  throughout  the  world.     When  secrecy  was  no  longer 

18 


374  ECHOES  FROM  THE  EOCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

available,  the  Mormoiis  declared  it  the  vrork  of  savages,  and  Brigham 
Young,  as  ex  officio  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  in  the  Territory, 
transmitted  a  report  to  the  department  at  "Washington,  alleoino-  it  to 
be  the  work  of  hostile  Indians.  But  the  testimony  of  Bishop  Klingen 
Smith  and  the  confession  of  Lee,  both  declared  it  to  be  the  oraranized 
work  of  the  Mormon  authorities,  who  thus  sought  to  revenge  them- 
selves upon  the  people  of  Arkansas  for  the  killing  of  Parley  B.  Pratt 
by  McLean,  whose  wife  Pratt  had  succeeded  in  proselyting,  and  who 
afterward  became  one  of  his  wives  at  Salt  Lake  City.  Pining  for  her 
children,  she  induced  Pratt  to  accompany  her  back  to  Arkansas,  in  the 
hope  of  obtaining  them  from  her  husband,  but  who,  incensed  at  the 
act  of  robbery  of  his  wife  and  attempted  abduction  of  his  children, 
fell  upon  Pratt  and  killed  him  while  seeking  escape. 

The  little  children  whose  Uves  had  been  spared  were  two  years 
after  by  order  of  the  United  States  authorities,  gathered  from  the 
Mormon  families  in  which  they  had  been  placed,  and  sent  to  their 
friends  at  home. 

And  thus  the  murder  slept  for  years.  But  retribution  came  at  last 
to  one  of  the  chief  actors  in  the  fearful  crime.  It  came  after  the 
lapse  of  twenty  years — after  honors  of  the  Mormon  church  had 
gathered  upon  him  and  wealth  and  possessions  had  crowned  his  latter 
years  with  ease,  if  such  a  blood-stained  monster  could  know  an  hour 
of  ease.  Man  never  laid  his  hand  in  blood  upon  the  head  of  his 
brother,  that  God's  hand  did  not  fasten  the  rope  of  retribution  about 
his  own  neck.  Blood  hath  strange  tongue  to  tell  of  that  crime  which 
stains  the  soul  of  man  with  an  infernal  hue ;  and  nature,  with  all  her 
oratory,  exceeds  herself  to  make  it  known  in  aU  the  voices  of  her  speech. 

A  man  who  had  long  been  a  member  of  the  Mormon  faith 
apostatized,  became  the  citizen  of  an  adjoining  State,  and,  weighted 
with  the  terrible  crime  that  dragged  him  to  the  portals  of  the  damned, 
sought  by  confession  to  mitigate  the  pangs  of  conscience  which  ever 
brought  in  sad  review  the  long  procession  of  murdered  men  and  women 
his  own  hand  had  aided  in  robbing  of  their  lives. 

On  the  10th  of  April,  1871,  nearly  fourteen  years  after  the  com- 
mission of  the  crime,  Bishop  Philip  Klingen  Smith  made  the  following 
affidavit: 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  375 

STATE  OF  NEVADA,    ) 
County  of  Lincoln.      \ 

Personally  appeared  before  me,  Peter  B.  Miller,  clerk  of  court  of  the  Seventh 
Judicial  District  of  the  State  of  Nevada,  Philip  Klingen  Smith,  who  being 
duly  sworn,  on  Ms  oath  says:  My  name  is  Philip  Klingen  Smith,  I  reside  in  the 
County  of  Lincoln,  in  the  State  of  Nevada.  I  resided  at  Cedar  City,  in  the  county  of 
Iron,  in  the  Territory  of  Utah,  from  A.  D.  1852  to  A.  D.  1859.  I  was  residing  at 
said  Cedar  City  at  the  time  of  the  massacre  at  Mountain  Meadows,  in  said  Territory 
■of  Utah.  I  had  heard  that  a  company  of  emigrants  was  on  its  way  from  Salt  Lake 
City  bound  for  California.  Said  company  arrived  at  said  Cedar  City,  tarried  there 
one  day,  and  passed  on  for  California.  After  said  company  had  left  Cedar  City  the 
militia  was  called  out  for  the  purpose  of  committing  acts  of  hostility  against  them. 
Said  call  was  a  regular  military  call  from  the  superior  officers  to  the  subordinate 
officers  and  privates  of  the  regiment  at  Cedar  City  and  vicinity,  composing  a  part 
of  the  militia  of  the  Territory  of  Utah.  I  do  not  recollect  the  number  of  the  regi- 
ment. I  was  at  that  time  the  Bishop  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints 
at  Cedar  City.  Isaac  P.  Haight  was  President  over  said  church  at  Cedar  City  and  the 
southern  settlements  in  said  Territory.  My  position  as  Bishop  was  subordinate  to  that 
of  President.  W.  H.  Dame  was  President  of  said  Church  at  Parowan  in  said  Iron 
County;  said  W.  H.  Dame  was  also  colonel  of  said  regiment;  said  Isaac  C.  Haight 
was  lieutenant-colonel  of  said  regiment,  and  said  John  D.  Lee,  of  Harmony,  in  said 
Iron  County,  was  major  of  said  regiment.  Saidregiment  was  duly  ordered  to  muster, 
armed  and  equipped  as  the  law  directs  and  prepared  for  field  operations.  I  had  no 
command  nor  office  in  said  regiment  at  the  time,  neither  did  I  march  with  said  regi- 
ment on  the  expedition  which  resulted,  in  said  company  being  massacred  in  the 
Mountain  Meadows  in  said  county  of  Iron.  About  five  days  after  the  said  company  of 
emigrants  had  left  Cedar  City,  that  portion  of  said  regiment  then  mustered  at  Cedar 
City  took  up  its  line  of  march  in  pursuit  of  them.  About  two  days  after  said  com- 
pany had  left  Cedar  City,  Lieut. -Col.  J.  C.  Haight  expressed  a  desire  that  said  com- 
pany might  be  permitted  to  pass  on  their  way  in  peace,  but  afterward  he  told  me  he 
had  orders  from  headquarters  to  kill  all  of  said  emigrants  except  the  little  children.  I 
do  not  know  whether  said  headquarters  meant  the  regimental  headquarters  at  Parowan, 
or  the  headquarters  of  the  Commander-in-chief  at  Salt  Lake  City.  When  the  said  com- 
pany had  got  to  Iron  Creek,  about  twenty  miles  from  Cedar  City,  Capt.  Joel  White 
started  for  Pinto  Creek  settlement,  through  which  said  company  would  pass,  for  the 
purpose  of  influencing  the  people  to  permit  said  company  to  pass  on  their  way  in 
peace.  I  asked  and  obtained  permission  to  accompany  said  White  and  aid  him  in  his 
endeavors  to  save  life.  When  said  White  and  myself  got  about  three  miles  from 
Cedar  City,  we  met  Maj.  John  D.  Lee,  who  asked  us  where  we  were  going.  I  replied 
that  we  were  going  to  try  to  prevent  the  killing  of  the  emigrants.  Lee  replied:  "I 
have  something  to  say  about  that."  Lee  was  at  that  time  on  his  way  to  Parowan, 
the  headquarters  of  Colonel  Dame.  Said  White  and  I  went  to  Pinto  Creek,  remained 
there  one  night  and  the  next  day  returned  to  Cedar  City,  meeting  said  company  of 
emigrants  at  Iron  Creek.  Before  reaching  Cedar  City  we  met  one  Ira  Allen,  who 
told  us  that  the  "decree  had  passed,  devoting  said  company  to  destruction."  After 
the  fight  had  been  going  on  for  three  or  four  days,  a  messenger  from  Major  Lee 
reached  Cedar  City,  who  stated  that  the  fight  had  not  been  altogether  successful, 
upon  which  Lieutenant-Colonel  Haight  ordered  out  a  reinforcement.  At  that  time 
I  was  ordered  out  by  Capt.  John  M.  Higbee,  who  ordered  me  to  muster  "armed 
and  equipped  as  the  law  directs."  It  was  a  matter  of  life  or  death  to  me  to 
muster  or  not,  and  I  mustered  with  the  reinforcing  troops.  It  was  at  this  time  that 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Haight  said  to  me  that  it  was  the  orders  from  headquarters  that 
all  the  eioigrants  were  to  be  killed  but  the  little  children.     Said  Haight  had  at  that 


376  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

time  but  just  returned  from  headquarters  at  Parowan,  where  a  military  council  had 
been  held.  There  had  been  a  like  council  held  at  Parowan.  previous  to  that,  at  which 
were  present  Colonel  Dame,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Haight  and  Jfaj.  John  D.  Lee.  The 
result  of  this  first  council  was  the  calling  out  of  said  regiment  for  the  purpose 
already  stated.  The  reinforcement  aforesaid  was  marched  to  the  Mountain  Meadows, 
and  there  formed  a  junction  with  the  main  body.  Major  Lee  massed  all  the  troops  at 
a  spring  and  made  a  speech  to  them,  saying  that  his  orders  from  headquarters  were 
to  kill  the  entire  company,  except  the  small  children.  I  was  not  in  the  ranks  at  that 
time,  but  on  the  side  talking  to  a  man  named  Slade,  and  could  not  have  seen  a  paper 
in  Major  Lee's  hands.  Said  Lee  then  sent  a  flag  of  truce  into  the  emigrant's  camp, 
offering  said  emigrants  that  "if  they  would  lay  down  their  arms  he  would  protect 
them."  They  accordingly  laid  down  their  arms,  came  out  from  their  camp  and 
delivered  themselves  up  to  Lee.  The  women  and  children  were  then,  by  order  of 
said  Lee,  separated  from  the  men  and  were  marched  ahead  of  the  men.  After  said 
emigrants  had  marched  about  half  a  mile  toward  Cedar  City,  the  order  was  given 
to.  shoot  them  down.  At  that  time  said  Lee  was  at  the  head  of  the  column ;  I  was  in 
the  rear.  I  did  not  hear  Lee  give  the  order  to  fire,  but  heard  it  from  the  under  officers 
as  it  was  passed  down  the  column.  The  emigrants  were  then  shot  down,  except 
seventeen  little  children,  which  I  immediately  took  into  my  charge.  I  do  not  know 
the  total  nimiber  of  said  company,  as  I  did  not  stop  to  count  the  dead.  I  immedi- 
ately put  the  little  children  in  baggage  wagons  belonging  to  the  regiment  and  took 
them  to  Hamlin's  ranch,  and  from  there  to  Cedar  City,  and  procured  them  homes 
among  the  people.  On  the  evening  of  the  massacre,  Col.  W.  H.  Dame  and  Lieut.- 
CoL  J.  C.  Haight  came  to  Hamlin's,  where  I  had  the  children,  and  fell  into 
a  dispute,  in  the  course  of  which  Haight  iold  Dame  that  if  he  was  going  to 
report  the  killing  of  said  emigrants,  he  should  not  have  ordered  it  done.  I  do  not 
know  where  or  when  said  troops  were  disbanded.  About  two  weeks  after  said 
massacre  occurred  said  Major  Lee  (who  was  also  an  Indian  agent)  went  to  Salt  Lake 
City  and,  I  believe,  reported  said  fight  and  its  results  to  the  commander-in-chief.  I 
was  not  present  at  either  of  the  aforementioned  councils,  nor  at  any  council  con- 
nected with  the  aforesaid  military  operations,  or  with  said  company.  I  gave  no 
orders  except  those  connected  with  the  saving  of  the  children,  and  those  after  the 
massacre  had  occurred,  and  said  orders  were  given  as  bishop  and  not  in  a  military 
sense.  At  the  time  of  the  firing,  at  the  first  volley,  I  discharged  my  piece.  I  did 
not  fire  afterward,  though  several  subsequent  volleys  were  fired.  After  the  first 
fire  was  delivered  I  at  once  set  about  saving  the  children.  I  commenced  to  gather 
up  the  children  before  the  firing  had  ceased. 

I  have  made  the  foregoing  statement  before  the  above  entitled  court  for  the 
reason  that  I  believe  I  would  be  assassinated  should  I  attempt  to  make  the  same 
before  any  court  in  the  Territory  of  Utah.  After  said  Lee  returned  from  Salt  Lake 
City,  as  aforesaid,  said  Lee  told  me  that  he  had  reported  fully  to  the  President, 
meaning  the  commander-in-chief,  the  fight  at  Mountain  Meadows  and  the  killing  of 
said  emigrants.  Brigham  Young  was  at  that  time  the  commander-in-chief  of  the 
militiA  of  the  Territory  of  Utah;  and  further  the  deponent  saith  not. 

(Signed.)  ■  Philip  Klisgkx  Smith. 

Subscribed  and  sworn  to  before  me  this  10th  day  of  April,  A.  D.  1871. 

(Signed.)  P.  B.  Miller,  County  Clerk. 

The  Mormons  who  attempt  to  exonerate  Brigham  Young  from 
guilty  complicity  in  this  horrible  massacre  allege  that  when  offered  a 
tithing  of  this  blood-bought  gain,  he  indignantly  threw  it  from  him. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  377 

This  testimony,  if  none  other  could  be  produced,  is  sufficient  in  itself  to 
convict  him  of  guilty  knowledge  of  the  crime  and  its  perpetrators. 
He  could  have  brought  them  to  punishment  for  their  murderous  deed, 
but  he  failed  to  do  so,  and  on  the  contrary  sent  a  report  in  his  official 
capacity  to  the  department  at  Washington,  declaring  it  to  be  the 
work  of  savages.  There  is,  however,  overwhelming  evidence  to  prove 
that  Brigham  was  entirely  conversant  with  the  details  of  the  cruel 
massacre,  and  that  John  D.  Lee  submitted  to  him,  in  his  official  capac- 
ity, a  full  report  of  the  same,  as  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  for 
the  Territory  of  Utah,  and  that  report  was  written  out  by  his  direc- 
tion by  the  said  Lee,  almost  under  the  eaves  of  his  own  official  resi- 
dence in  the  city  of  Salt  Lake  within  two  weeks  after  the  horrible 
crime  Avas  perpetrated.  It  was  this  testimony  which  Judge  Titus 
referred  to,  when  he  affirmed  in  the  presence  of  Brigham  Young  the 
possession  of  such  evidence  during  the  early  morning  walk  before 
alluded  to. 

About  the  same  time  the  affidavit  was  made  there  appeared  in  the 
Gentile  paper  published  at  Corinne,  Utah,  a  series  of  letters  addressed 
to  Brigham  Young,  propounding  certain  questions  relating  to  the  massa- 
cre, and  making  certain  declarations  intended  to  connect  him  and 
others  high  in  the  councils  of  the  church  with  that  terrible  crime  of 
bloodshed,  and  demanding  an  investigation  and  trial  by  the  courts  of 
the  offenders  against  the  laws  of  God  and  man. 

These  articles,  written  by  one  who  likewise  had  formerly  affiliated 
with  the  Mormon  Church  and  had  been  initiated  in  the  mysteries  of 
that  religion  and  was  acquainted  with  its  secret  history,  made  a  won- 
derful and  widespread  impression  on  the  public  mind.  Public  opinion 
was  excited,  and  a  universal  demand  was  made  by  all  right-minded  men 
that  those  who  had  been  charged  with  the  murder  of  the  peaceable  band 
of  emigrants  should  be  brought  to  trial  and  punished  for  the  revolting 
crime. 

As  time  progressed  Congress  enacted  new  laws  for  the  better 
government  of  the  Territory,  and  revolutionized  the  system  of  the 
judiciary,  including  the  mode  of  empaneling  jurors.  The  jurors  no 
longer  were  Mormons  who  had  taken  a  secret  oath  to  sustain  the 
authority  of  Brigham  Young  and  obey  his  commands  above  all  other 
powers,  including  that  of  the  United  States  Government.  A  fair, 
honest  and  impartial  trial  was  now  a  possible  thing  in  the  Territory  of 
Utah. 


378  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

Finally,  after  a  charge  by  the  presiding  judge  of  the  First  Judicial 
District  of  the  Territory,  the  grand  jury  of  Beaver  County,  upon 
information  filed  before  them,  presented  an  indictment  against  John 
D.  Lee  and  others,  on  the  24 th  of  September,  1874 ,  for  the  crime 
committed  on  September  16th,  1857. 

After  his  indictment,  Lee  attempted  to  escape,  but  was  captured 
in  the  mountains  by  United  States  troops  while  in  the  disguise  of  a 
miner  with  pick  on  his  shoulder.  He  was  first  tried  at  Beaver  City,  in 
the  Territorial  District  Court  in  Jul\%  1875,  Judge  Boreman  presiding. 
At  this  trial  the  jury  disagreed — nine  being  for  acquittal  and  three  for 
conviction.  A  second  trial  was  had  on  the  same  indictment  in 
September,  1876,  in  the  same  court  and  before  the  same  judge,  result- 
ing in  a  verdict  of  guilty,  upon  the  evidence  of  Klingen  Smith  and 
others  who  were  present  and  testified  fully  against  him.  Lee  was  then 
sentenced  to  be  shot  on  the  26th  of  January,  1877,  having  elected  that 
mode  of  execution,  the  laws  of  the  Territory  permitting  the  condemned 
to  choose  the  mode  of  death. 

The  case,  however,  was  appealed  on  a  writ  of  error  to  the  supreme 
court  of  the  Territory.  The  judgment  of  the  lower  court,  however, 
was  affirmed  at  the  January  term  in  1877,  and  its  sentence  ordered  to 
be  enforced  at  the  March  term  of  the  district  court  in  1877.  The 
day  of  his  execution  was  set  by  Judge  Boreman  on  Friday,  March  23d, 
1877,  at  the  place  of  the  fearful  butchery  in  which  nearly  twenty  years 
before,  he  had  taken  part  as  chief  actor. 

On  the  morning  of  his  execution  he  was  taken  thence  by  the  United 
States  marshal,  who  read  to  him  the  order  and  sentence  of  the  court. 
At  its  conclusion  he  asked  Lee  if  he  had  anything  to  say  before  the 
sentence  of  the  law  was  carried  into  effect. 

He  replied,  looking  at  the  photographer  who  was  adjusting  his 
instrument  to  take  a  picture  of  the  proceedings,  "  I  wish  to  ask  the 
favor  of  that  man  to  furnish  each  of  my  three  wives  with  a  cop\^  of 
my  photograph."  As  he  uttered  the  names  of  his  wives  he  involun- 
tarily posed  himself  and  the  picture  was  taken.  He  then  arose  and, 
looking  for  a  moment  at  his  guards  and  the  spectators  of  the  execu- 
tion, to  the  number  of  eighty,  addressed  them  as  follows : 

"  I  have  but  little  to  say  here.  Of  course,  I  feel  that  I  am  on  ^the 
brink  of  eternity,  and  the  solemnity  of  eternity  should  rest  upon  my 
mind  at  the  present   moment.    I  have  made  out  a  manuscript — an 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  379 

abridged  history  of  my  life,  which  will  be  published  after  my  death. 
I  have  given  my  feelings  and  views  with  regard  to  all  other  things.  I 
feel  resigned  to  my  fate. 

"I  feel  as  calm  as  a  summer  morning,  I  have  done  nothing 
adversely  wrong.  My  conscience  is  clear  before  God  and  man,  and  I 
am  ready  to  meet  my  Redeemer.  This  it  is  that  places  me  up  on  this 
field.  I  am  not  an  infidel ;  I  have  not  denied  God  or  His  mercy.  I 
am  a  strong  believer  in  these  things.  The  most  I  regret  is  parting  with 
my  family.  Many  of  them  are  unprotected  and  will  be  left  fatherless. 
When  I  speak  of  these  little  ones  they  touch  a  tender  chord  within 
me. 

"  I  have  done  nothing  designedly  wrong  in  this  affair.  I  used  my 
utmost  endeavors  to  save  those  people.  I  am  sacrified  to  satisfy  feel- 
ings and  am  used  to  gratify  parties ;  but  I  am  ready  to  die.  I 
have  no  fear  of  death.  It  has  no  terrors  for  me ;  and  no  particle  of 
mercy  have  I  asked  for  from  court  or  officials.  I  shall  never  go  to  a 
worse  place  than  the  one  I  am  now  in.  I  have  said  to  my  family,  and 
I  will  say  it  to-day,  that  the  Government  of  the  United  States  sacri- 
fices their  best  friend,  and  that  is  saying  a  great  deal,  but  it  is  true. 

"  I  am  a  true  believer  in  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  do  not 
believe  everything  that  is  practiced  and  taught  by  Brigham  Young.  I 
do  not  agree  with  him.  He  is  leading  his  people  astray.  But  I  believe 
in  the  gospel  as  taught  in  its  purity  by  Joseph  Smith  in  former  days. 
I  used  to  make  Brigham  Young's  will  my  pleasure,  and  did  so  for  thirty 
years.  See  how  and  what  I  have  come  to  this  day !  I  have  been 
sacrified  in  a  cowardly  and  dastardly  manner. 

"  I  regret  to  leave  my  family  and  thousands  of  good  people  in  the 
church  whom  I  cherish  in  my  heart.  They  are  near  and  dear  to  me. 
I  declare  I  did  nothing  designedly  wrong  in  this  affair.  I  did  all  in  my 
power  to  save  those  emigrants,  but  I  am  the  one  that  must  suffer.  Hav- 
ing said  this  I  feel  resigned.  I  ask  the  Lord  my  God  to  extend  His 
mercy  to  me  and  receive  my  spirit.     My  labors  are  here  done." 

It  was  eleven  o'clock  as  he  ceased  speaking,  and  the  marshal 
informed  him  that  the  hour  set  for  his  execution  had  arrived  and  he 
must  prepare  for  death.  The  spot  chosen  for  his  execution  was  just 
in  front  of  the  monument  erected  to  the  memory  of  the  slaughtered 
emigrants.  Its  awful  inscription  stared  the  condemned  man  in  the 
face : 

"Vengeance  is  mine,  saith  the  Lord;  I  will  repay." 


380  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUKTAIXS. 

Lee  now  seated  himself  on  the  coffin  provided  for  his  body,  and 
gazed  at  the  small  group  of  riflemen  who  weoe  to  shoot  him.  The 
Methodist  minister,  Stokes,  who  was  his  spiritual  adviser,  knelt  beside 
him  on  the  sward  and  uttered  a  fervent  prayer,  asking  for  the  forgive- 
ness of  his  sins  and  commending  his  soul  to  the  mercy  of  his  Maker. 

The  marshal  advanced  and  adjusted  a  white  handkerchief  over 
his  eyes.  Lee  then  remarked  in  a  low  but  clear  tone,  "  Let  them  aim 
at  my  heart.     Don't  let  them  mangle  mj'  body." 

The  five  men  selected  as  executioners  promptly  obeyed  the  order 
of  the  marshal  to  "  make  ready."  Kaising  their  rifles  to  their  shoul- 
ders, they  took  deUberate  aim  at  the  blindfolded  man  sitting  on  his 
coffin  twenty  feet  away.     All  present  stood  with  uncovered  heads. 

"  Fire  !  "  rang  out  clear  and  strong  on  the  morning  air.  The  sharp 
crack  of  five  rifles  responded,  and  Lee  fell  back  on  the  coffin,  moti  .n- 
less  and  dead.  He  died  in  a  single  instant,  for  there  was  not  a  cry 
or  moan  or  gasp  ;  not  even  a  tremor  of  the  body.  His  form  was  as 
still  and  motionless  as  if  it  had  been  carved  of  marble. 

After  the  lapse  of  a  few  minutes  the  marshal  examined  the  body 
to  see  if  life  was  entirely  extinct.  The  silence  was  broken  by  the 
words :  "  He  is  dead.  The  law  is  satisfied  at  last."  The  body  was 
placed  in  the  casket  and  borne  in  the  wagon  to  Cedar  City  where  it 
was  delivered  to  his  relatives. 

Thus  died  John  D.  Lee,  the  chief  actor,  if  not  inspirer,  of  the 
fearful  butchery  of  128  human  beings,  who,  reposing  confidence  in  his 
humanity,  had  placed  their  lives  in  his  keeping,  under  his  solemn 
pledge  of  protection.  He  expiated  his  terrible  crime  about  twenty 
years  after  he  had  bathed  his  hands  in  their  innocent  blood  amid  the 
thrilling  and  dramatic  scenes  surrounding  the  very  spot  where  he 
had  encompa^ed  their  rain,  and  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  monument 
commemorating  his  ghastly  deed,  with  the  voice  of  God  sounding  in 
his  ears — that  promise  which  centuries  of  time  have  never  hashed, 
"  Vengence  is  mine,  saith  the  Lord ;  I  will  repay." 

The  manuscript  alluded  to  by  Lee  was  a  full  confession  of  his 
participation  in  the  Mountain  Meadow  massacre,  \\  ritten  after  sentence 
of  death  had  been  passed  upon  him  in  September,  1876,  and  presented 
to  one  of  his  counsel,  who  published  it  after  his  death  in  accordance 
with  his  will 

The  following  is  the  confession  of  John  D.  Lee : 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  381 

'•  My  name  is  John  D.  Lee.  I  was  born  on  September  6th,  1812,  at 
Kaskuskia,  Kandolph  county  Illinois.  My  mother  belonged  to  the 
Catholic  Church  and  I  was  christened  in  that  faith.  My  parents  died 
while  I  was  still  a  child,  and  my  boyhood  was  one  of  trial  and  hard- 
ships. 

"I  mtirried  Agatha  Ann  Woolsey  in  1833,  and  moved  to  Fayette 
county,  Illinois,  on  Rock  Creek,  where  I  became  wealthy. 

"  In  1 836 1  became  acquainted  with  some  traveling  Mormon  preach- 
ers. I  bought,  read  and  believed  the  Book  of  Mormon.  I  sold  my 
property  in  Illinois  and  moved  to  Far  West,  Missouri,  in  1837,  where  I 
joined  the  Mormon  Church  and  became  intimately  acquainted  with 
Joseph  Smith,  Brigham  Young  and  other  leaders  of  the  Church  of 
Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints. 

"I  was  subsequently  initiated  into  the  Order  of  Danites,  at  its 
first  formation.  This  order  was  solemnly  sworn  to  obey  all  orders  of 
the  priesthood  of  the  Mormon  Church ;  to  do  any  and  all  things  as 
commanded.  The  '  Destroying  Angels '  of  the  Mormon  Church  were 
selected  from  this  organization. 

"I  took  an  active  part  as  a  Mormon  soldier  in  the  conflict  between 
the  people  of  Missouri  and  the  Mormons,  which  made  Jackson  county, 
Missouri,  historic  ground.  When  the  Mormons  were  expelled  from 
Missouri,  I  was  one  of  the  first  to  settle  at  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  where  I 
took  an  active  part  in  all  that  was  done  for  the  church  or  city. 

"  I  had  charge  of  the  construction  of  many  of  the  public  buildings 
there ;  was  a  policeman  and  body-guard  of  Joseph  Smith,  at  Nauvoo. 
After  his  death  I  held  the  same  position  to  Brigham  Young,  who  suc- 
ceeded Smith  as  prophet,  priest  and  revelator  in  the  church. 

"  I  was  recorder  of  the  quorum  of  Seventy,  head  clerk  of  the 
church,  and  organized  the  priesthood  into  the  Order  of  Seventies.  I 
took  all  the  degrees  in  the  Endowment  House,  and  stood  high  in  the 
priesthood. 

"  I  traveled  extensively  through  the  United  States  as  a  Mormon 
missionary,  and  acted  as  trader  and  financial  agent  for  the  church  from 
the  death  of  Joseph  Smith  until  the  settlement  of  Salt  Lake  City. 
I  was  on  the  locating  committee  that  selected  the  sites  for  the  various 
towns  and  cities  in  Utah  Territory. 

"  I  held  many  oflBces  in  the  Territory,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
Mormon  Legislature,  and  probate  judge  of  Washington  county, 
Utah. 


382  ECHOES  FROM  THE  KOCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

"  I  believe  in  the  doctrine  of  polygamy,  and  have  been  sealed  to 
eighteen  women,  three  of  whom  were  sisters,  and  one  was  the  mother 
of  three  of  my  wives.  I  was  sealed  to  this  old  woman  for  her  soul's 
salvation. 

"  I  was  an  honored  man  in  the  church,  flattered  and  regarded  by 
Brigham  Young  and  the  Apostles  until  I  was  cut  off  from  the  church 
and  selected  as  the  scapegoat  to  suffer  for  and  bear  the  sins  of  my  peo- 
ple. As  a  duty  to  myself  and  mankind  I  now  confess  aU  that  I  know 
and  all  that  I  did  at  the  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre,  without  any  ani- 
mosity to  any  one,  shielding  none,  giving  facts  as  they  existed. 

"  Those  with  me  on  that  occasion  were  acting  under  orders  from 
the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints.  The  horrid  deeds 
there  committed  wer»i  done  as  a  duty  which  we  believed  we  owed  to 
God  and  to  our  church. 

"  "We  were  all  sworn  to  secrecy  before  and  after  the  massacre. 
The  penalty  for  giving  information  concerning  the  same  was  death. 
As  I  am  to  suffer  death  for  what  I  then  did  and  have  been  betrayed 
both  by  those  who  gave  me  the  orders  to  act  and  the  instructions  of 
my  assistants,  I  now  give  the  world  the  true  facts  as  they  exist,  and 
teU  why  the  massacre  was  permitted,  and  who  were  the  active  partic- 
ipants. 

"  The  Mountain  Meadows  massacre  was  the  result  of  bhnd  teach- 
ings of  Brigham  Toung,  and  it  was  done  by  the  orders  of  those  high 
in  authority  in  the  Mormon  community.  The  immediate  orders  for 
the  massacre  were  issued  by  Colonel  Dame,  Lieut.-Col.  Isaac  C. 
Haight  and  the  council  at  Cedar  City,  Utah.  I  had  no  position 
either  in  the  civil  or  military  departments,  or  in  the  church  at  that 
time.  About  September  7th  I  went  to  Cedar  City,  where  I  met  Isaac 
C.  Haight,  president  of  that  stake  of  Zion,  and  also  lieutenant-colonel 
of  the  Iron  County  Mormon  militia.  This  was  on  a  Sunday.  Lieu- 
tenant-colonel Haight  was  the  leader  there  in  aU  things,  civil,  clerical 
and  military.  It  was  a  crime  punishable  by  death  to  disobey  his  orders. 
He  gave  me  a  full  account  of  the  emigrants  who  were  coming.  'We 
slept  in  the  iron-works  aU  that  night  and  arranged  our  plans.  He 
said  the  emigrants  were  a  rough  set ;  that  they  were  bad  men,  robbers 
and  murderers,  and  had  helped  to  kiU  the  Mormon  prophets.  I 
believed  him,  I  was  ordered  to  raise  the  Indians  to  attack  the  train 
and  run  off  their  cattle,  and  to  have  the  Indians  kill  the  emigrants. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    ilOUNTAlisS.  383 

I  sent  Cafl  Shirts,  my  son-in-law,  to  raise  the  Southern  Indians  for  the 
work.     Nephi  Johnson  went  to  the  other  tribes. 

"  On  Monday  evening  I  left  the  iron  works  to  obey  my  orders. 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Haight  said  :  'We  are  acting  by  orders  ;  it  is  all 
riffht.  TVe  will  let  the  Indians  bear  all  the  blame.'  I  said  :  '  We  are 
forbidden  to  shed  innocent  blood.'  The  reply  of  Haight  was :  '  There 
is  not  a  drop  of  innocent  blood  in  the  whole  lot.  Go,  Brother  Lee, 
and  carry  out  the  instructions  of  those  in  authority.  If  you  are  dutiful 
in  this  your  reward  shall  be  great  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  for  God 
will  bless  those  who  obey  counsel,  and  make  all  things  fit  for  the  peo- 
ple of  the  Lord  in  their  days.' 

"  On  my  way  home  I  passed  many  Indians  out  on  the  war-path.  I 
promised  to  join  them  the  next  day.  On  Tuesday  morning  the  Indians 
attacked  the  train  just  at  daylight  and  killed  seven  and  wounded  six- 
teen emigrants.  The  emigrants  then  fortified  their  position,  and  the 
Indians  surrounded  them  and  sent  for  me.  The  whole  country  was 
aroused  by  whites  and  Indians  rushing  to  Mountain  Meadows  from  all 
directions. 

"I  arrived  at  the  camp  late  on  Tuesday  afternoon  and  found  the 
Indians  in  large  force.  They  demanded  that  I  should  lead  the  attack. 
I  refused  till  further  orders  from  Haight  or  Dame. 

"  I  then  went  south  ten  miles  and  met  some  whites  and  Indians 
coming  from  that  direction.  I  camped  there  that  night,  and  on 
Wednesday  went  to  the  Meadows  and  sent  a  man  to  Cedar  City  for 
further  orders.  On  Thursday  the  orders  came  by  Major  Higbee. 
There  were  fifty-eight  whites  and  500  Indians  there.  Then  Major 
Higbee  made  a  speech  and  said  that  the  emigrants  were  all  to  be 
killed  who  could  talk ;  that  we  must  get  them  out  of  the  fortifications 
by  treachery. 

"  I  was  to  follow  the  flag  of  truce  and  make  a  treaty  Avith  the 
besieged  and  promise  protection.  I  was  also  to  get  the  arms  of  the 
emigrants,  and  the  sick  and  wounded  and  also  the  children  into 
the  wagons.  Then  the  troops  under  Major  Higbee  would  meet  the 
emigrants.  The  Indians  were  to  remain  in  ambush.  The  women 
were  to  go  ahead.  The  Indians  then  were  to  kill  the  women.  The 
militia  were  to  kill  the  men,  and  I  and  the  drivers  of  the  wagons 
were  to  kUl  the  wounded  and  sick  that  were  in  the  wagons.  Several 
other  men  made  speeches.     Then  we  had  a  prayer-circle,  and  then 


384  ECHOES    FllOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

more  speeches  were  made,  and  it  was  agreed  bj  all  parties  that  it  was 
the  will  of  Gk)d  for  us  to  do  as  we  were  ordered. 

"On  Friday  morning  the  emigrants  had  a  white  flag  flying,  and 
the  Mormon  brethren  again  assembled.  Speeches  were  made  and  all 
expressed  themselves  as  willing  to  act. 

"koll  of  the  assassins  presext. 

"  Maj.  John  M.  Higbee;  Phihp  K,  Smith,  Bishop  of  the  church  at 
Cedar  City;  Joel  "WTiite,  "William  C.  Stewart,  Benjamin  Arthur,  Alex- 
ander "Wilden,  Charles  Hopkins,  Tate  Ira  Ellew,  Robert  Wiley, 
Richard  Harrison,  Samuel  Pollock,  Daniel  McFarlan,  John  Ure, 
George  Hunter,  Joseph  Smith,  Samuel  Jukes,  Xephi  Johnson,  Carl 
Shirts,  Levett  Jacobs,  John  Jacobs,  E.  Curtis,  Thomas  Cartwright, 
-William  Bateman,  Anthony  Stratton,  A.  Loveridge,  Joseph  Clews, 
John  Durfey,  Columbus  Freeman,  and  others,  making  fifty-eight 
whites,  and  four  or  five  hundred  Indians. 

"  Major  Higbee  then  addressed  the  party  and  said  : 

"  *  Brethren,  it  is  the  order  of  the  President  that  all  the  emigrants 
must  be  put  out  of  the  way.  President  Haight  has  counseled  with 
Colonel  Dame,  and  has  received  orders  from  him  to  put  all  of  the  emi- 
grants out  of  the  way-  All  of  them  must  be  killed,  especially  those 
that  might  talk  again.' 

"  He  spoke  of  the  character  of  the  emigrants.  He  said  that  the 
church  authorities  of  Southern  Utah  were  aU  there,  and  that  we  were 
acting  as  a  church  for  the  sake  of  Christ.  We  were  then  told  that  we 
were  there  to  do  a  duty  we  owed  as  good  church  f)eople.  That  the  orders 
of  those  in  authority  were  that  all  of  the  emigrants  that  could  talk  must 
die.  Major  Higbee  concluded  as  follows :  '  Our  orders  are  from  our 
leaders,  who  speak  with  inspired  tongues,  and  their  words  are  the  wiU 
of  good  men.  You  have  no  right  to  question  them.  You  must  obey 
as  you  are  commanded.' 

"The  flag  of  truce  was  then  sent  forward.  It  was  carried  by 
William  Bateman.  He  was  met  half  way  by  the  emigrants,  and  they 
held  a  parley  with  him.  Bateman  then  returned  and  reported  that  the 
emigrants  would  surrender  their  arms  and  do  as  they  had  been 
requested.  The  Mormon  soldiers  then  marched  out  to  within  two 
hundred  yards  of  the  emigrants.  They  next  took  wagons  and  went  to 
the  camp  and  stated  their  orders.  The  emigrants  then  surrendered, 
and  put  their  arms,  the  sick  and  the  wounded  and  the  children  into  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  385 

wagons.  While  they  were  burying  their  dead  men  the  emigrants 
burst  into  tears  and  said  they  feared  treachery.  As  soon  as  the  wagons 
were  loaded  the  trains  started.  The  emigrants  marched  in  single  file, 
the  women  and  larger  children  being  ahead;  then  the  men  came. 
When  the  wagons  were  half  a  mile  off  the  fire  commenced.  The 
Indians  killed  all  the  women  and  large  children  ;  the  Mormons  killed 
the  men.  The  drivers  with  me  killed  all  the  sick  and  wounded.  We 
saved  seventeen  of  the  children.  The  dead  were  stripped  and  mutil- 
ated, and  the  corpses  left  on  the  field.  The  next  day  Lieutenant- 
colonel  Haight,  Colonel  Dame  and  other  leaders  came  over.  JFinally 
they  quarreled,  Lieatenant-colonel  Haight  said  to  Colonel  Dame, 
*  You  ordered  it,  and,  damn  you,  it  is  too  late  to  go  back!'  Dame 
said  he  diil  not  know  there  were  so  many  of  tliem*.  We  buried  the  dead 
and  drove  the  cattle  to  Iron  Springs.  All  the  wagons  and  other  prop- 
erty were  sold  in  Cedar  City,  by  order  of  the  chui'ch  authorities.  All 
of  these  orders  were  fully  obeyed.  The  horrors  attending  the  massacre 
were  beyond  my  description.  The  brethren  were  sworn  again  to 
secrecy.  This  was  also  done  by  order  of  the  church,  which  then  was  at 
war  with  the  United  States  Government. 

"George  A.  Smith,  who  was  the  second  in  the  priesthood,  having 
just  happened  to  be  there  giving  orders,  visited  the  Indian  camp  with 
me.  He  said  he  came  to  instruct  the  people  to  let  none  of  the  emi- 
grants go  through  without  a  pass  from  President  Young,  Colonel 
Dame  or  Lieutenant-colonel  Haight ;  that  they  must  not  sell  the  emi- 
grants any  more  good  grain,  in  fact,  anything.  He  asked  if  the 
Indians  would  kill  all  bad  emigrants  ?  I  told  him  that  the  Indians  and 
the  Mormons  were  both  hostile  to  them,  and  would  kill  all  who  were 
not  under  the  protection  of  the  church.  This  pleased  him  and  he 
laughed  and  said  '  all  right.'  Lieutenant-colonel  Haight  and  Colonel 
Dame  told  him  the  same  thing.  He  taught  the  people  that  it  was  their 
duty  to  kill  all  emigrants  and  massacre  them  just  as  Brother  Smith 
and  the  other  leaders  wanted. 

"  Lieutenant-colonel  Haight  then  sent  me  to  Salt  Lake  City  for 
the  purpose  of  reporting  to  Brigham  Young,  and  he  promised  me  a 
crown  celestial  as  my  reward  for  what  I  had  done. 

"  I  went  to  Salt  Lake  City  and  made  my  report  to  Brigham  Young 
ten  days  after  the  massacre.  I  told  him  all,  everything,  who  were 
there,  who  were  guilty,  and  who  were  active  in  killing  the  emigrants; 


386  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUSTAIXS. 

in  fact^  all  I  knew.  I  said  to  him,  *  You  must  sustain  us  or  release  us 
from  the  endowment  oath  to  avenge  the  death  of  the  prophets.'  Brig- 
ham  said,  *I  wiQ  communicate  with  God.'  I  went  back  the  next 
morning  when  Brigham  said :  *  Brother  Lee,  not  a  drop  of  innocent 
blood  has  been  shed.  I  have  gone  to  Gk)d  in  prayer.  God  has  shown 
me  it  was  a  just*  act.  The  people  did  right;  but  were  onlyahttle 
hasty.  I  have  direct  evidence  from  God  that  the  act  is  in  accord 
with  God's  wilL  I  sustain  you  and  the  brethren  in  all  you  did.  All 
I  fear  is  treachery  on  the  part  of  the  brethren  concerned.  Go 
home  and  tell  the  brethren  I  sustain  them.  Keep  all  secret  as  the 
grave.  Xever  teU  any  one,  and  write  me  a  letter  laying  all  the  blame 
upon  the  Indians.  I. will  then  report  to  the  United  States  Government 
that  it  was  an  Indian  massacre.' 

"  Brigham  Young  was  then,  and  for  many  years  after,  fully  satis- 
fied with  me  and  my  act.  He  gave  me  three  wives  after  that,  and 
appointed  me  probate  judge  of  Washington  county,  and  nothing  but 
cowardice  has  made  him  desert  me  now. 

"  Fifty  head  of  cattle  were  sold  in  Salt  Lake  City  by  the  authori. 
ties  for  merchandise;  the  emigrants  had  450,  making  500  head  in  all. 

"  "When  Cradlebaugh  was  judge  in  Utah,  and  went  to  Mountain 
Meadows  to  investigate  the  massacre,  Brigham  Young  came  with  him ; 
he  then  knew  all  about  the  massacre  and  upheld  the  brethren.  He 
preached  at  Cedar  City  and  said  about  the  emigrants:  *  Do  you  know 
who  they  were  I  I  will  tell  you.  They  were  the  fathers,  mothers, 
brothers,  sisters,  aunts,uncles  and  children  of  men  who  killed  the  Saints 
in  Jackson  county,  and  afterward  killed  the  Prophet  in  Carthage 
jaiL  Their  children  are  in  the  poorhouse;  their  relatives  refuse  them 
because  they  are  the  children  of  thieves,  outlaws  and  murderers.  I 
have  been  told  there  are  many  brethren  who  are  willing  to  inform  on 
those  who  did  this  thing.  I  hope  there  is  no  truth  in  the  rumor. 
I  hope  no  such  person  lives.  If  there  is,  I  tell  you  what  your  fate 
wHI  be.  Unless  you  repent  at  once,  keep  secret  all  that  you  know 
and  protect  each  other,  you  will  die  a  dog's  death.  You  will  soon  go 
to  hell  as  damned  lost  souls.  Let  me  hear  no  more  of  treachery 
among  my  people.'  Any  one  who  had  proved  traitor  there  would 
have  met  the  destroying  angel  at  once. 

**  After  I  reported  to  Brigham  Young,  I  went  home  and  met  Lieu- 
tenant-colonel Haight  and  gave  him  a  full  report  of  Young's  statement. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  387 

Haight  said  :  '  "Well  done,  faithful  servant ;  you  shall  receive  a  celestial 
reward  for  your  services.  You  have  deserved  well  of  God  and  the 
church.' 

"  I  next  proceeded  to  write  an  account  of  the  massacre,  laying  it 
to  the  Indians.  I  wrote  a  long  letter,  the  same  as  has  been  produced 
in  evidence  against  me.  Brigham  Young  knew  that  it  was  false  and 
written  to  save  the  Mormon  Church.  His  report  to  the  Government 
was  a  part  of  the  plan  to  save  the  Mormons  from  blame.  It  was  years 
after  before  I  knew  I  had  been  made  a  tool  of  by  the  leaders.  I  only 
obeyed  the  orders  of  my  superiors,  I  then  believed  I  was  serving  God 
and  would  receive  a  celestial  reward.  Now  I  know  it  is  wrong  and 
that  my  reward  is  not  to  be  celestial. 

"  The  original  plan  was  to  have  none  but  Indians  take  part  in  the 
massacre,  but  William  C.  Stewart,  Joel  White  and  Benjamin  Arthur 
were  coming  to  Mountain  Meadows  on  Wednesday  night ;  they  met 
young  Allen  and  another  man  going  from  the  emigrants  to  Cedar  City 
for  help.  They  told  of  the  Indian  attack  and  asked  aid  from  the 
settlers.  The  only  reply  was  a  shot  from  Stewart  which  killed  Allen. 
The  other  man  was  wounded  by  White  and  Arthur,  but  escaped  and 
carried  word  that  the  whites  had  come  to  help  the  Indians.  After 
this  the  authorities  said  there  was  no  safety  but  in  killing  all  who 
could  talk. 

"  William  C.  Stewart  was  the  most  bloodthirsty  of  any  one  there. 
He  cut  throats  just  for  amusement.  Klingen  Smith,  the  bishop  of 
Cedar  City,  killed  a  man.  Every  one  there  took  part  in  killing  men, 
women  and  children  as  a  religious  duty. 

"  We  w^ere  at  that  time  in  the  midst  of  the  excitement  of  the 
reformation,  and  were  made  to  believe  by  the  teachings  of  our  leaders 
that  the  fullness  of  time  had  come — that  the  Mormons  were  to  conquer 
the  world  at  once  and  inherit  all  the  wealth  of  the  universe ;  that 
Christ  w^as  to  come  and  rule  for  a  thousand  years,  and  that  the  Mor- 
mon doctrine  was  to  be  universally  accepted. 

"  We  were  followers  of  false  teachers.  I  have  fallen  a  victim  to 
the  arts  of  foolish  and  wicked  men  that  I  once  believed  were  divine. 

"  I  have  had  eighteen  wives.  Eleven  of  them  have  been  divorced 
from  me  by  Brigham  Young ;  three  still  remain  true  to  me,  and  have 
clung  to  me  through  my  imprisonment.  1  am  the  father  of  sixty-four 
children.     Ten  are  dead ;  fifty -four  are  still  living.     The  witnesses  on 


388  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

mj  trial  have  not  told  the  whole  truth.  They  are  all  guilty  of  helping 
to  kiU  the  emigrants.  This  is  the  only  act  of-,  violence  that  I  ever 
took  part  in,  except  when  in  lawful  battle.  I  would  not  have  acted 
on  that  occasion  as  I  did  to  have  saved  my  body  from  torture,  had  I 
not  believed  I  was  obeying  the  orders  from  the  heads  of  the  church. 
I  knew  I  was  proceeding  according  to  the  teachings  of  the  priesthood, 
and  I  still  think  Lieutenant-colonel  Haight  had  his  orders  from  the 
heads  of  the  church. 

"  My  journals  and  private  writings  have  been  destroyed  by  Brig- 
ham  Young.  I  have  nothing  left  but  my  memory  to  give  as  my  account 
of  the  foul  deeds  done  in  God's  name  during  the  years  when  Brigham 
Young  was  chief  ruler  in  Utah. 

"  I  know  of  many  other  murders,  castrations  and  robberies  com- 
mitted by  order  of  the  priesthood,  all  of  which  I  have  fuUy  stated  in 
my  writings  delivered  to  my  attorney,  W.  W.  Bishop.  ^ 

"  I  have  told  the  whole  truth,  and  the  Grod  I  am  soon  to  meet  face 
to  face  knows  that  my  assertions  are  nothing  but  the  truth. 

"  John  D.  Lee." 

Attest :  The  foregoing  is  a  full  abstract  of  the  confession  of  John 

D.  Lee,  taken  from  the  original  manuscript  now  in  my  possession,  and 

gives,  so  far  as  such  a  condensed  report  can  do,  a  full  statement  of  the 

facts  disclosed  in  the  writings  of  John  D.  Lee,  which  relate  to  the 

Mountain  Meadows  Massacre. 

William  W.  Bishop. 

This  confession  of  Lee,  while  undoubtedly  truthful  as  to  the  out- 
line of  facts  and  special  purposes  of  the  slaughter,  and  the  parties 
engaged  therein  as  well  as  a  revelation  of  the  intimate  counection  of  the 
heads  of  the  church  with  the  sanguinary  deed,  is,  nevertheless,  a  labored 
effort  on  his  part  to  extenuate  his  own  guQt.  He  would  have  the 
world  believe  that  of  all  who  were  engaged  in  the  treacherv,  betrayal 
and  final  murder  of  the  peaceful  emigrants,  he  alone  was  opposed  to 
the  sacrifice  of  innocent  blood,  and  was  driven  to  his  own  murderous 
acts  by  the  fanaticism  of  his  religion,  and  the  fear  of  death  in  case  of 
disobedience. 

This  statement  is  at  variance  with  all  testimony  connecting  him 
with  the  fearful  crime.  He  was  assuredly  one  of  the  three  or  four 
active  leaders  who  planned  the  details  of  the  massacre.  He  it  was 
who  commanded  the  Mormon  regiment  that  marched  in  pursuit  of  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS.  389 

unsuspecting  emigrants.  He  it  was  who,  as  Indian  agent  of  the 
southern  tribes  of  the  Territory,  called  them  out  to  accompany  him 
and  take  part  in  the  bloody  details.  He  it  was  who  massed  his  troops^ 
according  to  the  testimony  of  an  eye-witness  at  his  trial,  at  the  distance 
of  half  a  mile  from  the  beleaguered  camp,  and  delivered  to  them  a 
speech  in  which  he  declared  that  his  orders  from  headquarters  were  to 
kill  all  the  emigrants  and  all  the  children  who  could  talk.  He  it  was  who 
sent  the  white  flag  of  truce — that  peaceful  emblem  of  civilized  humanity ; 
the  emblem  of  faith  and  protection  all  over  the  world — to  his  intended 
victims,  assuring  them  that  if  they  would  lay  down  their  arms  he 
would  protect  them.  And  he  it  was  who  superintended  each  detail  of 
the  horrible  massacre  and,  having  placed  his  savage  allies  in  ambush, 
at  the  proi)er  moment  gave,  himself,  by  an  act  of  murder,  the  shooting 
of  a  sick  woman  in  the  wagon  the  signal  for  them  to  spring  from 
bush  and  rock  and  bemn  their  fiendish  slauo:hter. 

Judge  Cradlebaugh,  who  made  vigorous  and  determined  but 
ineffectual  efforts  to  bring  the  murderers  to  justice,  stated  his  recollec- 
tion of  one  of  the  children  spared  from  the  butchery,  John  Calvin 
Sorrow — how  appropriate  his  name — who,  after  finding  himself  safe,  and 
before  he  was  brought  away  from  Salt  Lake  City,  although  but  a  little 
boy,  sitting  as  if  in  a  contemplative  mood,  doubtless  thinking  of  the 
extermination  of  his  family  and  saying:  "01  wish  I  was  a  man  I  I 
know  what  I  would  do ;  I  would  shoot  John  D.  Lee.  I  saw  him  shoot 
my  mother." 

Tlie  further  fact,  fully  attested  at  the  trial,  of  his  inhuman  conduct 
already  alluded  to,  on  the  field  of  slaughter,  where,  inhis  rage  and  mad 
fury,  he  bent  aside  with  his  left  arm,  by  his  superior  strength,  the  body 
of  his  own  son  who  sought  to  protect  a  beautiful  girl  who,  after  the  fire 
of  the  first  volley  of  rifles  had  strewn  the  ground  with  her  dead  com- 
panions, threw  herself  into  the  young  man's  arms  and  appealed  to  him 
to  save  her  life.  The  kindly  instincts  of  thej^outh  were  aroused,  and  he 
sought  to  shield  her  bod}'-  with  his  own.  His  own  father,  John  D.  Lee, 
murdered  the  girl  in  his  arras,  while  at  the  same  moment  he  threatened 
the  life  of  his  own  son.  Neither  God  nor  man  will  hold  him  blameless, 
and  he  read  his  final  doom  ere  he  fell  lifeless  on  his  coffin,  inscribed 
upon  the  marble  shaft  before  him  : 

"Vengeance  is  mine,  saith  the  Lord;  I  will  repay." 


CHAPTER  XXTL 

THE  GRASSHOPPKRSl-GRAPHIC  DE?CRTPTIOX  OF  THE  DESCENT  UPOX  THE  VALLEY 
OF  SALT  LAKE  OF  A  VAST  ARMY  OF  GRASSHOPPERS,  AXD  THE  DESTRUC- 
TION OF  EVERT  LIVING  GREEN  THING  IN  THE  VALLEY— THE  PATIENCE 
AND  RESIGNATION  OF  THE  MORMONS— THE  TALES  TOLD  BY  THE  MORMONS 
OF  STRANGE  JHRACLES  FOR  THEIR  PRESERVATION  IN  EARLY  DAYS— THE 
STORIES  OF  THE  STORK  AND  THE  CRICKETS-THE  SEA-GULLS  AND  THE 
-   GRASSHOPPERS. 

It  was  high  noon  of  a  bright  summer  day  in  the  month  of  August, 
1868.  I  was  walking  northward  along  Main  Street  in  the  city  of  Salt 
Lake,  deeply  engrossed  in  thoughts  concerning  a  mining  venture  I  had 
just  consummated.  I  did  not  at  first  notice  the  citizens  generally  gazing 
intently  skyward,  nor  that  a  sudden  darkness  appeared  over  the  land, 
as  of  a  shadow  projected  by  some  object  intervening  between  the  sun 
and  the  earth. 

In  a  moment,  however,  my  attention  was  directed  to  the  strange 
phenomenon,  and,  in  turn,  looking  upward,  I  -beheld  a  sight  which  I 
had  never  before  and  have  never  since  observed.  It  appeared  to  me 
as  if  vast  moveable  masses  of  dark  objects,  lighted  at  intervals  by  sil- 
very rays,  were  rolling  onward  in  great  waves  through  the  ether,  far 
above  the  cloud-tipped  mountains  that  shot  up  from  the  valley. 

"  "What  are  those  distant  objects  moving  at  such  great  height  above 
us?"  I  asked  of  a  native  of  the  valley. 

"  They  are  a  vast  army  of  locusts  moving  apparenth^  to  the  north- 
east over  our  city, "  replied  the  man,  "  and  I  trust  in  God  they  wiU  not 
drop  to  the  earth  till  they  get  out  of  our  vallej . " 

Of  course,  I  had  heartl  much  of  the  famous  armies  of  grasshoppers 
that,  in  earlier  years,  had  swept  over  the  fertile  valley,  destroying  like 
the  breath  of  a  simoon  the  vegetation  that  crowned  the  earth  with  its 
green  verdure,  but  I  had  hitherto  never  witnessed  the  phenomena 
which,  in  after  years,  became  so  ordinary  and  so  frequent  and  disas- 
trous a  visitation  as  to  destroy  the  crops  of  whole  States  and  reduce  the 
people  to  the  verge  of  starvation. 

Leo-endarv  lore  had  been  transmitted  bv  the  earlv  Mormon  set- 
tiers  to  the  succeeding  generations,  and  winter  firesides  had  been  excited 

390 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


391 


by  the  marvelous  tales  of  the  pioneers  of  those  early  times,  when  the 
hand  of  God  alone  preserved  the  stricken  Saints  from  famine  and  starv- 
ation. 

I  was  much  amused  by  the  story  of  the  sea-gulls  and  crickets 
which  had  of  ttimes  been  repeated  in  my  hearing  by  the  pious  and  rev- 
erent believer  in  this  special  act  of  Providence  toward  His  chosen  peo- 
ple in  the  wilderness.  The  story  was  always  the  same,  never  varying 
from  that  Avhich  was  first  related. 

About  the  second  year  after  the  Mormon  entry  into  the  valley,* 
myriads  of  crickets  attacked  their  fields  of  grain,  until  it  was  feared  all 


GRASSHOPPERS  DESCENT  UPON  SALT  LAKE  VALLEY. 

would  be  destroyetl  and  the  people  perish  from  starvation.  At  this 
moment  of  dire  peril,  however,  the  Lord  came  to  their  relief  in  a  won- 
derful and  mysterious  manner.  He  sent  great  flocks  of  sea-gulls  from 
beyond  the  western  mountains  to  devour  the  destroyers  of  their  waving 
grain  fields.  The  gulls  came  in  the  early  dawn  of  morning  and  fed 
upon  the  crickets  all  day  long.  And  here  is  the  most  remarkable  por- 
tion of  this  "  o'er  true  tale."  When  filled  to  repletion  they  did  not  fly 
away  as  all  other  sea-gulls  w^ould  and  await  the  operation  of  digestion 
ere  again  returning  to  their  luxurious  repast,  but,  when  not  another 


392  ECHOES  FHOM  THE  EOCKT   MOUNTAINS. 

cricket  could  be  swallowed,  the  gulls  under  direction  of  "  the  Lord  '* 
flew  to  the  great  lake  hard  by  and  vomited  them  upon  its  saline  watere. 
This  little  scheme  they  kept  up  all  day  long,  feeding  and  disgorging, 
until  niffht  closed  their  labors  and  all  the  crickets  were  devoured.  Thus 
did  Providence  kindly  interpose  to  preserve  the  people  from  starvation. 

It  is  a  beautiful  legend  from  early  times  of  privation  and  suffering 
in  the  fear  of  the  Lord.  But  some  skeptic  has  asked,  "  TVho  sent  the 
crickets?"  ""Why  the  need  of  the  sea-gulls  or  this  *  miracle  of  God'  to 
preserve  them  ? "     Xone  of  the  priesthood  have  ventured  a  reply. 

The  year  following,  the  locusts  came  in  force  and  nearly  destroyed 
their  crops  ;  there  were  no  friendly  storks  or  sea-gulls  at  hand.  But 
the  phenomen  this  warm  August  day  surpassed  aU  else  of  like  char- 
acter happening  in  the  vallej^  Wave  after  wave  of  this  dark  mass, 
ever  and  anon  changing  to  a  silvery  brightness,  rolled  on  until  it 
seemed  as  if  the  whole  valley  wherein  Salt  Lake  City  lay  in  its  beauti- 
ful robe  of  green,  was  completeh'^  covered  at  a  vast  height  by  a  waving 
mass  that  obscured  the  sun  at  noonday. 

The  city  at  that  time  was  in  its  perfect  beauty.  Dressed  in  its 
robe  of  living  green  it  stood  forth  in  its  resplendent  verdure,  a 
footstool  of  God,  the  type  of  civilization  wrought  from  the  desert,  sur- 
rounded by  tall  cliffs,  bare,  brown  and  barren.  A  city  embowered  in 
shrubbery,  with  its  long  lines  of  shade  trees,  its  broad  streets  fringed 
with  a  wealth  of  verdure  that  rustled  in  the  breeze,  rippling  streams 
from  the  great  canon  that  watered  fruitful  gardens  of  flowers  and 
vegetables,  and  withal  that  wonderful  growth  of  domestic  fruit  that 
gave  to  the  mining  camps  and  small  settlements  for  hundreds  of  miles 
about,  those  delicious  supphes  that  in  the  long  snowbound  winter 
months  gave  relish  and  enjoyment  to  the  lone  settler  and  miner  imprisr 
oned  in  his  ice-clad  canon.  The  boughs  of  the  peach,  apple,  pear, 
plum,  apricot  and  green  gage  trees  were  bending  to  the  earth  beneath 
their  load  of  half -ripened  fruit.  Grapes  hung  in  huge  clusters  upon  the 
vine  with  a  wealth  of  promise  scarcely  ever  before  known  even  in  that 
fertile  spot.  Bushes  were  thickly  covered  with  nearly  ripe  small  fruits, 
gooseberries,  currants,  raspberries  and  all  of  that  class  that  ripen  much 
earlier  away  from  the  frowns  and  shadows  of  the  o'ertowering  mount- 
ains. 

Such  was  this  garden  of  the  gods  on  that  eventful  day  when  the 
locusts  overshadowed  it^ — poised  in  the  heavens  as  if  debating  whether 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  393 

they  should  move  on  upon  tireless  wing  to  far  distant  fields  of  wild 
mountain  verdure,  or  whether  they  should  swoop  down  in  countless 
myriads  upon  the  doomed  city  and  leave  it  as  barren  as  its  sister 
wastes. 

The  chances  seemed  equal.  As  yet  not  a  locust  had  fallen  to  the 
earth.  The  wave  of  light  and  darkness  still  rolled  on  above  as  in  the 
beginning.  Would  it  at  length  pass  over  and  leave  us  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  our  labor  and  the  beauties  of  glowing  nature  ?  Fate,  dire, 
relentless  fate,  cast  itself  in  the  balance  and  despoiled  the  city  of  its 
glory.     The  sweet  old  poet  Cowper  tells  us  : 

"Fate  steals  along  -witli  silent  tread, 
Found  oftenest  in  what  we  dread ; 
Frowns  in  the  storm  with  angry  brow, 
But  in  the  sunshine  strikes  the  blow." 

Its  stroke  came  with  another  phenomenon.  Hitherto  there  had 
been  but  little  rain  in  the  valley,  never  more  than  a  slight  sprinkling 
of  rain  drops.  While  fierce  storms  raged  around  the  mountain  heights, 
and  a  dense  growth  of  stubby,  mountain  cedar  coveted  their  brows, 
no  rain  fell  upon  the  parched  earth,  and  only  the  undergrowth  of  veg- 
etation, such  as  the  sage  brush  and  the  greasewood  grew  in  its  soil. 
With  the  advent  of  the  Mormons  came  the  system  of  irrigation,  which 
made  all  this  green  verdure,  fruit,  grass  and  flowers  blossom  in  the 
desert  waste. 

Suddenly,  while  the  dread  locusts  hung  over  the  city,  there  came 
a  great  rain  storm.  Huge  drops  fell  spattering  upon  the  earth  and, 
increasing  in  volume,  soon  became  a  deluge,  filling  all  the  gutters  and 
swelling  the  tiny  irrigating  rivulets  into  streams.  Down  with  the 
rain  drops  came  the  locusts,  and  the  ruin  began. 

The  rainfall,  though  severe,  was  of  brief  duration.  In  a  little 
while  it  ceased  and  sunshine  again  filled  the  valley.  Overhead  the 
rolling  waves  of  light  and  darkness  were  no  longer  to  be  seen.  The  sky 
was  serene,  the  blue  cerulean,  the  air  fresh  as  with  the  morning  dew. 
Underneath  Avere  countless  swarms  of  locusts,  ravenous  with  hunger, 
eager  to  feed  on  the  succulent  juices  of  the  tender  shoots  of  tree  and 
limb,  on  bud  and  flow^er  and  fruit,  on  leaf  and  twig  and  grass  blade, 
on  vine  and  clustering  grape  blooms.  The  earth  w^as  black.  Every 
inch  of  space  seemed  filled  with  the  devouring  insect.  They  filled 
every  nook  and  corner  of  the  garden,  dooryard  and  orchard.  All  the 
streets  were  alive  with  them.    They  invaded  the  household,  penetrated 


394  ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY    MOUlTrAINS. 

jour  chamber  through  the  open  windows,  hung  upon  your  clothing,  lay 
down  with  you  in  sleep,  sat  with  you  at  table,  flew  in  your  face  with 
revengeful  blow,  and  even  crushed  beneath  yoii  feet  as  you  trod  the 
carpeted  floor.  Every  bough,  leaf  and  twig  upon  tree  and  bush  was 
black.  They  swarmed  upon  the  ripening  fruit  and  obscured  it  from 
view.  Peach  and  plum  stones  clung  to  their  stems  with  all  the  pulp 
devoured.  Apples  and  pears  fell  to  the  earth  half  devoured,  and  were 
consumed  u^xju  the  ground  by  the  vast  hordes  that  lay  in  wait  below. 
^Nothing  escaped  their  eager  prey.  Xo  living  herbage  remained.  The 
running  streams  of  water  were  filled  with  the  dead  insects.  The  air 
was  impregnated  with  a  sickening  odor.  At  places  where  they 
swarmed  over  some  object  of  prey  bushels  could  be  gathered  with 
spade  and  shovel. 

In  the  fields  they  settled  upon  the  green  blades  of  the  growing 
grain,  devouring  all  that  was  tempting  and  bHghting  all  that  remained. 
The  vegetable  gardens,  the  pride  of  Mormon  skill  and  industry,  from 
which  their  winter  stores  were  housed,  and  which,  for  lack  of  currency, 
were  ofttimes  a  means  of  exchange  among  the  people,  were  left  a 
blackened  ruin,  as  if  swept  by  the  breath  of  a  simoon.  The  great  lake 
was  covered  with  their  floating  bodies,  and  for  months  after,  an  offens- 
ive odor  prevented  a  near  approach,  from  the  myriads  of  decaying 
bodies  washed  upon  the  shores  of  the  lake. 

For  five  days  this  carnival  of  ruin  went  on,  until  every  green  thing 
was  consumed.  And  then,  as  if  marshaled  by  an  intelligent  mind,  an 
occult  force  that  ran  as  an  electric  power  along  their  lines  of  invasion, 
stretching  across  the  valley  and  reaching  beyond  the  limits  of  the  great 
lake,  at  the  command  of  this  leading  influence,  whatever  it  might  be, 
inst^intaneously,  with  the  sound  of  a  signal  of  whirring  wings,  the 
whole  vast  army  of  invaders  rose  on  rapid  wing  to  the  same  lofty 
height  from  which  they  had  descended  upon  the  earth,  and  moved  in 
the  same  dark  lines  and  silvery  waves  toward  the  northeast,  on  the 
same  course  which  had  been  arrested  five  days  before,  when  they 
dropped  from  the  skies  upon  the  doomed  city  of  the  Saints. 

And  what  a  sight  to  behold  I  A  city  scudding  under  bare  poles! 
All  the  leaves  were  gone  from  the  trees,  only  their  ghostly  boughs  and 
stems  remained,  swaying  like  spectres  in  the  wind !  Each  tree  and 
shrub  was  as  bare  and  brown  as  in  the  desolate  winter,  when  its  life- 
blood  had  hurried  away  at  the  fii*st  breath  of  the  Ice-King  to  its  shelter 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  395 

in  the  warm  sinews  of  the  earth,  dropping  its  plumage  in  its  flight. 
Only  desolation  remained ;  and  desolation  amid  sunshine !  The 
flowers  were  gone,  the  fruits  had  disappeared,  the  green  leaves 
had  suddenly  faded  from  existence.  The  husbandman  stood  like 
Marius  of  old  amid  the  ruin  that  lay  around  him.  The  months  of 
weary  labor  were  all  lost.  The  promise  of  the  bud  the  fruit  would 
not  fulfill — for  him  there  should  be  no  recompense  that  year.  The 
winged  robbers  of  the  vast  etherial  highway  had  taken  its  all  and  left 
no  recompense.  And  yet,  in  the  midst  of  all  this  ruin  and  loss,  I  heard 
no  murmur  or  complaint.  I  was  never  so  forcibly  impressed  with  the 
sincerity  of  the  followers  of  Joseph  Smith.  They  looked  upon  it  as  a 
decree  of  Providence,  which  must  be  born  as  patiently  as  any  other  act 
of  misfortune  which  had  hitherto  befallen  them.  Many,  indeed,  of 
the  poorer  classes  might  suffer  privation  and  hunger  during  the  long 
winter  months  that  were  coming  from  the  loss  of  their  grain,  fruit 
and  vegetables,  yet  no  word  of  repining  at  this  dispensation  of  the 
Lord  was  heard  to  escape.  The  calamity  might  bring  sorrow  enough 
in  its  train,  but  they  must  not  murmur  at  the  blow ;  it  was  the  result 
of  some  evil  which  must  be  sought  out  and  overcome. 

I  recall  the  beautiful  faith  of  one  woman,  the  lady  of  the  house 
where  I  was  boarding.  She  was  the  first  wife  of  Elder  Orson  Hyde, 
president  of  the  Twelve  Apostles  of  the  church  who  had  taken  unto 
himself  a  number  of  young  wives,  and  with  them  was  dwelling  in  his 
bishop's  diocese  at  San  Pete  in  Southern  Utah.  She  had  two  sons  in 
England,  who  were  there  on  a  mission  by  order  of  the  church  author- 
ities. These  young  men  were  supported  by  the  labor  of  their  aged 
mother,  who  entertained  two  "Gentile"  families  for  the  money  that 
would  enable  her  to  perform  this  material  and  spiritual  act.  She  was 
indeed  a  sincere  Christian  woman,  gentle  in  her  ways,  patient  in  her 
sorrows  and  true  to  every  noble  instinct  of  womanhood.  I  lived 
beneath  her  roof -tree  for  more  than  a  year,  and  in  our  daily  intercourse 
I  possessed  the  opportunity  to  weigh  well  her  character  and  the  attri- 
butes of  her  faith.  I,  of  course,  had  a  purpose  in  view.  I  knew  her 
as  a  wife  who,  under  the  operation  of  the  peculiar  tenets  of  her  faith, 
justified  by  what  was  assumed  and  declared  to  be  an  especial  revela- 
tion from  God,  had  been  virtually  discarded  and  abandoned  in  her  old 
age  by  the  one  who,  in  the  years  of  her  girlhood,  had  sworn  to  honor 
and  protect  her.     But  with  her  husband  she  had,  in  Ohio,  imbibed  the 


396  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

religious  views  set  forth  in  the  revelations  by  Joe  Smith,  and  uniting 
with  that  sect,  became  residents  of  Xauvoo  and  followers  of  the 
prophet.  Driven  from  place  to  place,  despoilefl  of  their  homes  and 
substance,  fleeing  from  before  the  law  and  the  vengeance  of  an  out- 
raged communitv,  this  woman,  ever  firm  in  the  faith  she  had  espoused, 
followed,  without  murmur  or  complaint,  the  hard  lines  and  treacher- 
ous fortunes  of  her  husband  interwoven  with  those  of  the  prophet. 

After  the  death  of  Joe  Smith  and  the  accession  of  Bricjham  Toung: 
to  the  head  of  the  church  of  Latter  Day  Saints  through  the  deposal  of 
Sidney  Rigdon,  she  transferred  her  allegiance  to  this  third  high  priest, 
and,  crossing  the  Missouri  Kiver,  traversed  with  the  Mormon  band  the 
almost  unknown  wilderness,  seeking  a  home  in  the  wild  mountain 
fastnesses  far  from  the  haunts  of  civilization. 

In  the  beautiful  vaUey  of  Salt  Lake  she  lived  and  reared  a  large 
famil}'  of  girls  and  boys.  She  lived  till  she  grew  aged  beneath  the 
shadow  of  the  grand  mountains  encircling  her  home.  She  beheld  her 
children  grow  to  manhood  and  womanhood  and  pass  from  under  her 
roof.  And  then  she  saw  her  husband,  whose  honors  in  the  church  had 
increased  with  his  years,  depart  from  her  hearthstone,  taking  wife 
after  wife,  until  finally  wedded,  according  to  the  forms  of  the  Mormon 
church,  to  several  young  woman,  younger  in  \'ears  than  his  own 
daughters,  go  to  his  mission  in  San  Pete  and  live  entirely  apart,  never 
visiting  her  save  when  called  to  Salt  Lake  City  to  the  annual  confer- 
ences of  the  church  or  to  the  sessions  of  the  Legislature  of  which  he 
was  a  member.  Such  was  the  life  of  this  woman  who,  for  the  sake  of 
her  peculiar  religion,  bore  without  murmur  or  complaint,  the  rigors  of 
neglect  and  abandonment.  And  for  the  sake  of  that  religion  she  toiled 
in  her  old  age  to  support  these  two  sons  sent  abroad  to  proselyte  the 
humbler  and  more  ignorant  classes  of  English  society  to  build  up  the 
church  in  the  far  interior  of  America. 

Her  home  in  Salt  Lake  City  was  her  own.  It  was  beautifully 
located  in  the  foothills  leading  to  Ensign  Peak.  It  was  surrounded 
by  a  garden  of  flowers  in  front  and  on  both  sides.  Before  it  was  the 
cool  water  of  City  Creek  rolling  down  from  the  canon  on  the  east,  its 
river  of  melted  snow  and  ice  from  the  distant  Wahsatch  Range  empty- 
ing into  the  River  Jordan.  Beautiful  shade  trees  lined  the  front 
enclosure,  protecting  the  dwelling  from  the  rays  of  the  hot  mid-day 
sun.    Beside  the  flower  garden  was  a  large  strawberry  patch  on  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  397 

right,  and  immediately  adjoining  it  was  a  fine  garden  of  vegetables. 
All  of  the  larger  enclosure  in  the  rear,  including  a  number  of  acres, 
was  devoted  to  the  culture  of  all  varieties  of  fruit  known  in  the  valley. 
A  prolific  arbor  of  grapes,  and  an  endless  quantity  of  small  fruit 
completed  one  of  the  finest  gardens  that  blossomed  in  the  vallc}''. 
From  the  products  of  her  gardens  and  orchard  was  drawn  a  part  of 
the  means  to  sustain  her  sons  in  their  distant  field  of  "  mission  work." 
All  not  needed  for  family  consumption  found  a  ready  and  remunera- 
tive sale  from  the  surrounding  camps  and  mining  settlements.  When 
the  locusts  were  poised  in  air  above  the  valley,  this  orchard  and 
garden  were  in  perfect  fruition.  The  boughs  were  bending  beneath 
their  load  of  ripening  fruits,  and  the  prolific  yield  that  season  of  all 
the  varied  products  of  the  vegetable  garden  gave  promise  of  golden 
results.  After  the  departure  of  the  hungry  horde  from  the  scene  of 
its  depredations,  nothing  but  the  bare  boughs  and  stems  of  the  fruit 
trees  and  bushes,  and  the  gnarled  stalks  and  stumps  of  the  garden 
remained  to  show  where  Nature's  lavish  hand  with  the  dew  and  the 
sunshine  had  laid  its  stores  with  matchless  skill  in  the  fruitful  lap  of 
Mother  Earth. 

I  recall  a  scene  the  da}^  the  locusts  disappeared.  We  stood  with 
this  devoted  woman  in  the  midst  of  the  ruin  and  desolation  that  lay  all 
about  her  home.  It  was  useless  to  utter  words ;  they  would  fail  to 
express  our  thought.  I  turned  and  gazed  upon  this  silver-haired  woman. 
A  robin  had  built  its  nest  in  an  apple  tree,  and  four  little  pin-feathered 
nestlings  lay  within  its  soft  folds.  An  August  sun  shot  down  its  level 
rays  upon  the  leafless  bough.  No  shelter  of  green  was  there  for  the 
tender  young.  The  scorch  of  the  sun  fell  fair  upon  them,  and  they 
were  faint  and  ready  to  die.  A  tear  stood  in  this  woman's  eye  as  she, 
too,  looked  upon  the  scene.  It  was  the  only  visible  emotion  I  beheld. 
Perhaps  her  mind  was  wandering  over  the  ocean  to  the  distant  land 
where  her  boys  were  awaiting  their  mother's  kindly  offering.  Perhaps 
it  was  the  unsheltered  robin's  nest,  or  it  may  have  been  the  general 
scene  of  ruin  which  suddenly  forced  itself  upon  her  with  all  its  terrible 
import  to  make  her  heart  exclaim  : 

**0h!  spirits  of  Peace,  where  are  ye?  Are  ye  all  gone, 
And  leave  me  here  in  wretchedness  behind  ye?" 

That  tear  was  all.  There  was  no  word  of  complaint,  no  murmur 
of  rebellion  against  the  decree  that  had  sent  the  ruin  like  a  shaft  of 


398  ECUOES    FKOM    THE     ROCKY     MOUXTAINS. 

-withering  flame  to  blight  all  that  was  sweet  and  beautiful  within  her 
own  domain.  ^ 

"Thv  will  be  done,  O  God  I  "  she  said,  lifting  her  hands  in  holy 
supplication ;  and  reaching  to  the  unsheltered  bough  of  the  apple  tree 
this  mother  in  Israel  gently  took  the  little  nest  of  robins  and  placed 
it  beneath  the  roof  of  her  porch  where  the  old  ones  followed  and 
reared  their  young. 

"Misfortune  is  never  mournful  to  the  soul  that  accepts  it,  for  such 
do  alwavs  see  that  every  cloud  is  an  angel's  face,"  saith  the  poet, 
and  it  was  alike  true  of  this  strange  people  of  the  valley. 


CHAPTER  XXYII. 

THE  MAIL  ROBBEES  OF  ECHO  CAJf ON  -  GRAPHIC  DESCRIPTION  OF  THEIR  ARREST 
AND  PUNISHMENT -DRIVERS  IN  LEAGUE  WITH  ROBBERS— NARROW  ESCAPE 
FROM  DEATH-TRIAL  AND  CONVICTION  OF  ROBBERS. 

One  day  I  was  hurriedly  sent  for  at  my  office  in  Salt  Lake  City  by 
the  agent  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Company,  the  overland  mail  contractors. 
There  had  been  continued  depredations  upon  the  mail  while  in  transit, 
and  all  the  energies  of  that  company  and  of  the  United  States  officials 
had  been  bent  toward  the  capture  and  conviction  of  the  mail  robbers. 
Many  had  suffered  the  extreme  penalty  of  the  law,  and  gradually  the 
depredations  became  fewer  and  a  greater  security  pervaded  the  service. 
The  agent  had  just  received  a  despatch  from  an  employe  of  the  com- 
pany at  Weber  Station  that  some  mail  robbers  had  been  arrested  in 
Echo  Caiion  and  were  held  awaiting  further  instructions.  I  at  once 
assumed  charge  of  the  case,  and,  telegraphing  the  agent  at  Weber 
Station  to  hold  them  securely  until  I  reached  there,  proceeded  imme- 
diately to  that  point,  accompanied  by  two  Salt  Lake  policemen. 

We  reached  Weber  Station  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and, 
taking  a  vehicle  known  in  the  mountains  as  a  lumber  wagon,  went 
directly  over  the  rocky  road  to  the  ranch,  where  they  were  held  as 
prisoners.  The  night  was  extremely  dark  and  the  road,  at  all  seasons 
an  unpleasant  one  from  the  flints  and  boulders  of  that  rocky  cafion, 
was  at  this  time,  from  recent  severe  storms,  extremely  hazardous. 
Still  in  our  flat-bottomed  concern  that  seemed  to  cling  to  the  sides 
of  the  tortuous  mountain  road  like  a  thing  of  life,  we  moved  as 
expeditiously  as  caution  would  permit.  It  was  long  after  midnight 
when  we  reached  the  lone  stock-ranch,  where  these  outlaws  were  held. 
I  found  two  desperate  looking  individuals  closely  guarded  by  four  or 
five  men,  who  proved  to  be  drivers  of  a  wagon-train  that  was  encamped 
hard  by.  The  story  of  the  capture  of  these  outlaws  was  thus  detailed, 
as,  standing  in  a  group  in  the  glare  of  a  lantern,  we  could  look  into 
each  others'  faces.  The  day  previous  this  small  train  of  four  or  five 
wagons,    on    their  way  to  the    end   of  the  railroad    for    supplies. 


400  ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

encamped  for  a  rest  and  a  feed  at  a  grassy  spot  near  the  stock-ranch. 
What  I  mean  bv  a  stock-ranch  is  a  station  for  Qhanging  the  horses  of 
the  Overland  Mail  and  Express  Company.  They  were  located  all 
along  the  line,  usually  about  ten  or  twelve  miles  apart,  and  contained 
relays  of  fresh  horses  for  the  coaches  of  the  company  that  passed  and 
repassed  each  day.  After  feeding  their  animals  and  cooking  their  mid- 
day meal,  they  ascended  for  some  distance  the  adjacent  mountains  to 
gather  a  species  of  hardwood  with  which  to  repair  some  portion  of 
•their  wagons,  out  of  gear.  The  day  being  pleasant  and  the  air  invig- 
orating, they  wandered  much  farther  up  the  mountain  than  they  at 
first  intended.  WhUe  engaged  in  this  pursuit,  their  attention  was 
attracted  to  what  seemed  in  the  distance  to  be  smoke,  and  thinking, 
the  mountain  might  be  on  fire,  or  rather  the  beginning  of  such  a  thing, 
they  moved  in  that  direction  as  rapidly  as  the  surface  of  the  hills 
would  allow.  They  did  not  dream  that  other  than  savage  hands  had 
fired  the  bush,  if  such  it  should  prove  to  be,  as  the  nature  of  the 
country  rendered  it  entirely  uninhabitable  for  the  white  man.  What 
was  their  surprise  on  gaining  the  spot  to  behold  two  white  men  asleep 
apparently  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  rocks  beside  a  fire  which  they 
had  kindled,  but  which  was  now  smoldering.  Approaching  noiselessly 
still  nearer,  they  were  still  more  surprised  to  behold  the  evidence  of 
repeated  mail  robberies,  as  the  ground  was  strewn  with  broken  and 
rifled  letters  and  packages,  and  quite  a  number  of  mail  sacks,  which 
had  been  ripped  open  and  their  wealth  of  contents  seized.  The  fire 
had  consumed  the  greater  portion  of  the  captured  mail,  but  there  still 
remained  a  large  number  of  letters  upon  the  ground  intact.  Consult- 
ing for  a  moment  in  low  whispered  tones  what  course  to  pureue,  these 
trainmen,  beholding  the  indisputable  evidence  of  a  large  and  serious 
mail  robbery,  determined  to  capture  the  robbers.  Fortunately  they 
had  brought  with  them  stout  cords  or  thongs  with  which  to  tie  in  a 
bundle  for  easier  transportation  the  wood  they  were  seeking.  Advanc- 
ing quickly  upon  the  sleeping  outlaws,  they  were  in  a  trice  disarmed 
and  securely  bound  together  by  the  trainmen,  two  of  whom  marched 
them  to  the  stock  ranch,  while  the  remainder  of  the  band  gathered  up 
the  remnants  of  mail  and  bore  it  together  with  the  mutilated  mail  sacks 
to  the  same  place.  A  courier  was  immediately  dispatched  to  Weber 
Station  and  the  telegram  sent  which  summoned  me  to  this  midnight 
adventure  in  the  weird  recess  of  Echo  Caiion.      We  little  dreamed 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


401 


what  would  happen  before  daylight  should  gild  its  mountain  walls. 
Of  course  it  must  be  understood  that  collusion  of  some  character 
existed  between  the  ranchmen  or  stock  tenders,  the  drivers  of  the 
coach  and  the  mail  robbers.  Frequently,  indeed,  these  land  pirates 
hired  themselves  as  ranchmen  and  mail  drivers,  more  effectually  to  aid 
their  partners  in  crime,  and  before  the  close  of  this  adventure  I  was 
fully  satisfied  of  the  guilty  complicity  of  the  driver  at  least,  if  not  the 
ranchmen. 

The  plan  of  theft  of  the  mail  sacks  was   this :     When  the  night 
coach  westward  bound  stopped  at  this  stock  station  to  obtain  its  relay 


DISCOVERY    OF    MAIL    ROBBERS. 


of  fresh  horses,  it  was  approached  by  the  robbers  in  the  darkness  and 
the  mail  sacks  taken  from  the  rear  leathern  boot  and  carried  up  the 
mountain  side  to  their  distant  retreat.  They  were  always  prudent  in 
their  operations,  and  never  failed  to  re-strap  the  boot  after  purloining 
the  number  of  sacks  they  could  conveniently  carry.  Certainly^  while 
acting  in  collusion  with  the  driver  and  stock-tenders,  they  were  per- 
fectly safe,  so  far  as  suspicion  went.     No  one  presumed  that  the  mail 


402  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

thieves  would  attempt  to  rob  a  coach  of  its  mail  treasures  immediately 
in  front  of  a  stock  ranch  and  in  the  immediate  presence  of  the 
employes  of  the  company.  And  as  the  company  deemed  all  of  its 
employes  to  be  honest,  suspicion  was  averted,  and  in  the  main,  possiblv. 
with  a  single  exception,  this  was  true,  and  fortunately  we  had  struck 
unawares  that  exception.  Again,  if  the  driver  was  honest  and  the 
stockmen  dishonest,  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  divert  his  attention, 
while  all  unsuspicious,  until  the  robbery  was  effected.  Certainly 
thieves  could  not  linger  about  a  station  without  being  detected  very 
early  in  their  operations.  The  train  men  informed  me  that  they  had 
been  urged  by  these  stock-tenders  to  release  the  prisoners  and  had  gone 
so  far  as  to  compel  them  to  take  them  from  their  ranch  to  their  own 
camp.  On  the  arrival,  however,  of  the  station  agent  at  "Weber,  with 
my  telegraphic  instructions,  they  were  carried  back  to  the  ranch  and 
placed  under  a  guard  of  men  he  had  brought  with  him  for  that  pur- 
pose. I  questioned  these  stock  men  very  closely  with  regard  to  these 
outlaws,  but  not  one  of  them  would  make  satisfactory  reply.  Coming 
suddenly  upon  the  prisoners  who  were  bound  in  the  farther  comer  of 
the  ranch,  in  the  darkness  I  heard  the  man  who  had  just  driven  us 
from  Weber  Station,  in  earnest  conversation  with  the  outlaws.  I  put 
my  lantern  in  his  face  and  asked :  "  What  are  you  doing  with  the 
prisoners  ? " 

He  replied  :  "  I  am  only  trying  to  find  out  if  I  know  them  and 
have  ever  seen  them  before.'' 

I  then  remarked :  "  How  could  you  do  that  in  the  dark  ? " 

He  failed  to  reply  to  this  interrogatory,  and  moved  out  of  the 
ranch  to  those  in  front  who  were  making  read}';  for  our  departure. 
It  was  my  intention  to  take  the  prisoners  direct  to  Salt  Lake  Cit\:, 
lodge  them  in  jail  and  try  them  forthwith  on  information  filed  before 
the  United  States  Court  then  in  session,  Judge  Titus  presiding,  for 
robbing  the  United  States  mails.  I  prevailed  on  one  of  the  trainmen 
who  had  aided  in  their  capture  to  accompany  me  to  that  point  to  testify 
in  the  case.  So,  placing  the  prisoners  in  the  wagon  with  the  Salt  Lake 
policeman  and  the  witness  seated  beside  them,  I  took  my  seat  with  the 
driver,  and,  with  the  mutilated  mail  sacks  and  remnants  of  mail  matter, 
began  our  journey  toward  Weber  Station,  which  we  hoped  to  reach 
by  daylight. 

Echo  Caiion,  which  I  have  fully  described  in  a  previous  chapter, 
is  at  some  points  intersected  by  narrow  lateral  gorges,  through  which 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  '    403 

flow  mountain  streams  from  the  lofty  watersheds  of  melted  snow  that 
lie  amid  the  mountain  tops  and  ice  fields  of  distant  summits.  Some- 
times these  streams  are  nearly  dry  with  but  a  few  feet  of  mud  and 
water.  At  others,  especially  in  early  summer,  they  are  deep  and 
rapid,  and  frequently  overflow  their  banks  and  sweep  away  the  bridges 
built  for  passengers  and  mail  transportation.  Not  more  than  a  third 
of  a  mile  from  the  ranch  we  had  just  left  was  one  of  like  character, 
which  but  a  little  while  before  had  become  a  torrent  and  swept  away 
and  destroyed  its  bridge,  and  a  rude  temporar}'-  structure  had  been 
erected  without  sides  or  railings  to  serve  until  the  better  and  stronger 
bridge  could  be  built.  It  was  now  a  placid  little  stream,  highly  dis- 
colored by  the  wash  of  the  hills  that  had  come  down  with  the  torrent 
which  rolled  from  the  mountains  to  the  water  path  of  Echo  Canon. 

The  night  was  very  dark,  and  the  darkness  was  intensified  by  the 
steep  walls  of  the  caiion  that  shut  out  even  the  dim  light  of  the  ether. 
We  were  compelled  to  trust  to  the  instinct  of  the  animals  and  the 
knowledge  of  the  driver,  who  had  traversed  this  road  for  many  months 
on  his  regular  daily  trips  as  driver  of  a  passenger  and  mail  coach. 
The  temporary  bridge  was  incomplete  upon  one  of  its  sides,  and 
slightly  elevated  above  a  depression  on  the  left  bank  of  the  gorge. 
The  roadway  was  quite  narrow,  not  much  broader  than  the  bridge, 
but  at  this  point  it  was  a  litttle  wider  from  the  rounded  sides  of  the 
tall  cliffs  at  the  confluence  of  gorge  and  caiion.  Had  the  driver  kept 
to  the  left  side  of  the  bridge,  which  was  the  usual  driveway,  we  would 
have  passed  over  in  safety,  just  as  we  did  on  our  approach  earlier  in 
the  night.  But  he  was  a  friend  of  the  prisoners,  and  laid  his  plans  to 
wreck  our  conveyance  at  that  point,  and  thus  enable  them  to  escape 
in  the  darkness  and  confusion  that  would  necessarily  follow.  Thus, 
instead  of  keeping  his  horses'  heads  in  a  straight  line  over  the  left 
line  of  the  bridge,  he  turned  them  to  the  right  as  we  rolled  quickly 
down  the  inclined  plane  leading  thereto,  and  ratthng  over  the  uneven 
boards,  shot  us  off  the  bridge  and  into  the  depression  immediately  in 
front,  pitching  us  all  out  into  the  darkness,  and  breaking  our  running- 
gear  and  one  of  the  wheels.  We  were  thus  left  with  one  of  the  hind 
wheels  on  the  bridge  and  the  two  fore  wheels  off  and  in  the  hollow 
before  us.  The  sudden  shock  was  terrific.  The  driver  and  prisoners 
alone  were  prepared  for  it,  as  he  had  doubtless  arranged  the  plan  of 
procedure    and    conveyed    his    intentions    to    them  at   the    time    I 


404  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKT    MOUNTAIXS. 

discovered  him  in  conversation  with  them  in  the  ranch.  They  did  not, 
however,  escape,  as  the  policemen  rolled  out  with  them,  and  not  being 
seriously  hurt,  immediately  seized  and  held  them  in  subjection  with 
his  pistols  in  their  faces.  Sitting  as  I  was  with  the  driver  on  the 
improvised  board  seat  laid  upon  the  wagon  sides,  with  my  feet  inside 
of  the  vehicle,  with  no  means  of  support  at  hand  and  totally  uncon- 
scious of  the  approaching  disaster,  I  was  thus  exposed  to  the  full  force 
of  the  shock  of  the  concussion  and  pitched  headlong  between  the  heels 
of  the  wheel  horses.  In  faUing,  one  leg  of  my  pantaloons  was  caught 
and  firmly  held  by  the  strong  iron  hook  of  the  singletree,  and  thus, 
with  my  head  between  the  horses'  heels,  and  my  own  at  an 
elevation  of  90°,  and  unable  to  move  on  account  of  my  contact 
with  the  iron  hook,  in  almost  total  darkness,  my  situation 
was  indeed  precarious.  But  that  which  added  to  my  great 
danger  and  threatened  my  instant  death  was  the  fact  that  the  oflf- 
animal,  which  I  learned  afterward  was  an  exceedingly  vicious  creat- 
ure, astonished  at  the  sudden  transition  from  a  peaceable  drive  to  a 
leap  in  the  darkness  and  the  succeeding  shock,  and  slightly  tickled  by 
the  close  shave  of  my  head,  as  I  fell  beneath,  began  to  kick  with  all 
his  force.  Although  man\'  years  have  elapsed,  as  I  now  write  I  can 
feel  the  same  sensations  that  I  did  then  when  my  life  seemed  hardly 
worth  a  rush.  I  can  feel  the  wind  from  his  vicious  heels  as  they 
careered  over  my  head,  the  close  shave  of  each  blow  of  the  iron-clad 
hoof  that  threatened  each  instant  to  crash  through  my  skuU  and 
scatter  ray  brains  on  the  ground.  I  can  feel  the  blood  running  down 
into  my  head  with  a  bursting  pain,  the  benumbing  of  my  limbs,  the 
horrible  sense  of  terrible  danger  and  that  other  feeling  of  expectant 
dread  that  the  next  and  the  next  blow  would  be  the  last.  Added  to 
this  was  a  heart-rending  cry  from  some  one  in  extreme  agony,  calling 
upon  God  to  kill  him  and  thus  end  his  miser}'  and  relieve  him  of  his 
dire  pain — the  sound  of  some  other  one  retching  and  vomiting  vio- 
lently from  the  shock  of  the  concussion,  and  another  voice  calling  my 
own  name  repeatedly,  and  I  unable  to  reply  or  be  heard,  at  least  while 
the  iron  heels  were  shattering  the  boards  above  me  and  dropping  the 
splinters  over  me — and  all  of  it  in  the  dark.  But  amid  it  all  I  kept 
my  senses  about  me.  I  felt  that  I  must  not  move  or  stir — that  per- 
haps if  I  did  not  my  life  might  be  spared,  as  in  some  way  I  would  be 
able  to  extricate  myself  from  the  terrible  position  in  which  I  was 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  407 

placed.  And  so  it  proved.  Although  the  hoofs  of  the  horse  each 
time  grazed  my  head,  I  had  sufficient  command  of  myself  to  keep  per- 
fectly still,  and  by  and  by,  perhaps  a  few  moments,  they  seemed  to  me 
an  age,  the  animal  ceased  its  efforts  to  demolisTi  the  wagon,  and  set- 
tled down  to  quietude  and  peace.  ]S"ow  was  my  opportunity.  If  I 
could  be  released  from  the  hook  that  so  securely  held  me,  I  could  make 
the  attempt  to  jump  from  beneath  the  horses'  feet  into  the  stream 
below  by  making  a  sudden  dive  under  the  wagon  and  the  exposed  end 
of  the  bridge,  which  was  quite  large  enough  to  admit  the  body  of  a  man. 
I  recall  that  I  was  clothed  in  a  great  overcoat,  for  the  mountain  air  of 
the  night  was  very  shrewd,  even  in  midsummer,  and  now  fall  was  quite 
upon  us.  So  when  the  horse  became  quiet  and  I  could  be  heard,  I 
called  to  one  of  the  policemen,  bade  him  listen  to  me  and  obey  me 
explicitly.  I  told  him  just  how  I  was  situated  and  that  I  was  nearly 
suffocated  from  the  blood  rushing  to  my  head,  and  that  I  could  not 
hold  out  much  longer.  I  stated  my  plan  of  extrication,  bade  him 
quietly  unhitch  the  nigh  horse  and  lead  it  gently  away ;  then  return  in 
as  quiet  a  manner  as  possible  and  release  my  hold  upon  the  hook  by 
cutting  my  pantaloons  away.  Instantaneous  with  that  operation  I 
would  drop  down  beneath  the  wagon  and  the  bridge  into  the  stream 
below.  This,  of  course,  would  startle  the  horse  and  perhaps  set  him 
again  to  kicking,  but  then  my  head  would  be  out  of  the  reach  of  his 
heels,  and  the  blow  would  be  upon  my  back — severe  enough,  doubtless, 
but  then  not  so  imminently  dangerous.  This  being  effectually  exe- 
cuted, I  made  my  escape  in  the  way  indicated,  with  a  parting  salute 
of  the  mad  animal's  heels.  They  did  not  touch  me,  however.  Good 
angels  were  about  me.  I  escaped  without  further  injury  than  the 
strain  of  the  shock  and  what  I  subsequently  endured,  and  a  good 
ducking  of  mud  and  water.  My  overcoat  was  so  completely  saturated 
with  the  mud  and  dirty  water  that  three  days  were  consumed  in  dry- 
ing and  scraping  it  off. 

On  emerging  from  the  ditch  I  immediately  inquired  as  to  the 
groans  and  cries  of  agony  I  had  heard,  and  was  informed  they  pro- 
ceeded from  the  train  man,  the  witness  accompanying  me  to  Salt  Lake 
City.  I  found  that  the  sudden  shock  which  lurched  us  all  out  of  the 
wagon  did  not  spare  him,  but  sent  him  flying  over  one  of  the  wheels, 
in  which  a  limb  became  entangled,  producing  a  severe  fracture  below 
the  knee-joint  of  both  of  the  bones.     He  had  been  extricated  and  laid 


408  ECHOES  FROM  THE   EOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

upon  the  ground,  and  a  messenger  dispatched  to  his  camp  for  lights 
and  assistance.  His  comrades  were  soon  at  hand  with  lanterns  and 
blankets,  and  his  position  made  as  comfortable  a"s  possible.  One  of  his 
companions  was  now  dispatched  to  TTeber  Station  for  a  light  spring 
wagon  to  remove  him  more  easily  to  that  point  whence  medical  aid 
could  be  summoned  from  Salt  Lake  City.  It  came  shortly  after  day- 
light, accompanied  by  a  blacksmith  with  proper  tools  to  mend  our 
own  conveyance.  This  being  accomplished,  we  again  started  on  our 
way  and  reached  there  without  further  mishaps.  As  I  did  not  wish  to 
leave  the  injured  man  until  I  saw  that  all  proper  arrangements  had 
been  made  for  his  comfort  and  recovery,  I  concluded  to  remain  there 
until  the  arrival  of  the  surgeons  who  had  been  summoned  from  Salt 
Lake  City  by  telegraph.  Accordingly  I  sent  forward  the  prisoners  in 
charge  of  the  oflBcers  who  lodged  them  safely  in  the  city  jail. 

The  pain  endured  by  this  injured  man  was  intense.  The  long  ride 
over  the  rough  mountain  road  taxed  his  strength  to  its  utmost  extrem- 
ity. Many  times  were  we  compelled  to  halt  to  ease  his  pain.  Once 
he  called  me  to  his  side  and  begged  me  to  end  his  agon\^  by  putting  a 
buUet  through  his  brain.  He  said,  when  we  expostulated  with  him, 
"  Why  permit  me  to  suffer  when  you  can  end  my  agony  in  a  moment  ? 
I  have  no  wife  or  children  dependent  ujwn  me  and  nothing  before  but 
a  hfe  of  misery — he  had  conceived  the  idea  that  hereafter  his  limb 
would  be  useless — why  not  accede  to  my  wishes  and  put  me  out  of 
my  pain  ?    I  beg  \'ou  for  God's  sake  to  do  it! " 

We  cheered  him  as  best  we  could,  but  when  he  found  that  we 
could  not  for  conscience  sake  perform  the  act  he  prayed  for,  he  then 
begged  that  I  would  lend  him  my  revolver  and  he  himself  would  per- 
form the  deed  that  would  end  it  all.  Of  course  we  would  have  been  a 
party  to  his  self-murder,  and  that  we  likewise  explained  we  could 
not  do. 

It  was  thus  we  passed  slowly  on  until  we  finally  arrived  at  the 
station  and  placed  him  on  a  bed  with  an  attendant  to  bathe  the  swoUen 
parts.  That  night  the  surgeons  arrived,  and  having  reduced  the  frac- 
tures and  set  the  broken  bones,  and  everything  having  been  provided 
for  his  comfort  and  convenience,  I  returned  with  the  doctors  to  Salt 
Lake  City  the  day  following. 

The  prisoners  were  tried  and  convicted  and  sentenced  to  hard 
labor  in  the  penitentiary  for  a  term  of  years.   One  of  these  brave  knights 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  409 

of  the  road,  at  the  conclusion  of  the  trial,  announced  the  pleasing  intelli- 
gence that  in  no  case  should  I  be  forgotten.  He  had  but  one  object 
now  in  life,  and  that  was  immediately  upon  his  release  "  to  shoot  me  stone 
dead."  He  did  not,  however,  survive  to  execute  his  threatened 
revenge.  One  bright  day,  with  a  number  of  other  convicts,  he  was  at 
work  on  the  streets  in  the  suburbs  of  Salt  Lake  City,  with  ball  and 
chain  attached  to  his  limb.  They  were  attended  by  an  armed  guard. 
This  knight,  having  in  some  way  slipped  his  chain,  made  a  swift  break 
for  liberty.  However,  he  could  not  outrun  the  bullet  of  the  marksman, 
who  hit  him  full  in  the  back  of  his  head,  and  he  fell  prone  upon  the 
earth  "  stone  dead."  Thus  was  my  valuable  life  spared  to  family, 
friends  and  country. 

The  other  gentle  robber  was  doomed  to  continuous  imprisonment. 
Having  served  faithfully  his  term  of  sentence  he  came  out  of  prison 
with  flying  colors.  He  was  once  more  a  freeman,  and  the  booty  now 
all  his  own,  lay  hid  in  the  mountains.  He  would  go  and  get  it.  How 
to  get  there  was  the  question  he  now  endeavored  to  solve.  From  one 
Mormon  he  stole  an  old  horse  and  harness,  and  from  another  a  small 
huckhoard.  United  they  formed  a  mode  of  conveyance,  and  in  the 
darkness  of  the  night  he  started  for  the  scene  of  his  former  depreda- 
tions. He  hoped  to  find  the  wealth  intact  which  they  had  stolen  from 
the  mails  and  hidden  in  the  rocks,  and  then  make  his  way  out  of  Utah 
Territory  to  South  Pass  City,  one  of  the  adjacent  mining  camps.  But 
the  Mormon  police  were  upon  his  trail  and  recaptured  him  in  Parley's 
Park.  He  was  again  tried  and  convicted  and  sentenced  to  a  long  term 
of  imprisonment  in  the  Mormon  penitentiary.  I  never  knew  his  final 
fate.  He  may  be  yet  searching  for  his  treasure,  or  possibly,  and  per- 
haps, probably  he  has  ere  this  filled  one  more  of  the  long  line  of 
graves  stretching  across  the  continent,  of  bad  men  "  who  died  with 
their  boots  on." 


CHAPTER  XXTIIL 

BEAB  RIVER  ClTY-JfURDER  COMMITTED  DURING  THE  COXSTRCCTIOX  OF  THE 
"GRADE"  — VIGILANXE  CX)MMITTEE  EXECUTES  OUTLAWS  — THE  TOWN  FIRED 
BY  ARMED  BANDS  OF  DESPERADOES— ARMING  OF  THE  CITIZENS  —  BATTLE 
AND  REPULSION  OF  THE  ROBBERS— DRIVEN  TO  THE  MOUNTAINS  —  THE 
"DEAD  LINE"'  — ARRIVAL  OF  UNITED  STATES  TROOPS  FROM  FORT  BRIDGER 
—  PEACB  RESTORED- MIDNIGHT  RIDB  FROM  BEAR  RIVER  TO  SALT  LAKE 
CITY— THE  UPSET  OF  THE  COACH  AND  DEATH  OF  THE  DRIVER,  SAGE  COL- 
LYER— LOST -TRAMPING  THROUGH  THE  DEEP  SNOWS  TO  FIND  THE  WAGON 
RUTS- THE  BIG  BAPTIST  ELDER  AND  HIS  LITTLE  WIFE— "HOLD  DOWN  THB 
COACH  "-THE  PERILOUS  RIDE  THROUGH  ECHO  CASON. 

During  the  construction  of  the  Utah  division  of  the  Union  Pacific 
Kaih*oad  the  larger  portion  of  the  grading  was  performed  by  contracts 
with  the  business  men  of  Salt  Lake  City.  Among  the  contractors  was 
Joseph  F.  Nounnan,  a  former  plainsman  and  afterward  a  banker  of 
that  city.  His  contract  included  fifty  miles  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Bear  River  crossing,  a  part  of  which  he  constructed  himself,  and  a  por 
tion  he  sublet  to  other  contractors.  At  the  time  of  beginning  the  work 
he  purchased  in  the  East  a  large  amount  of  stores  and  implements  of 
labor  for  his  own  use  and  those  who  chose  to  purchase  the  goods  at  a 
small  profit,  who  were  his  sub-contractors.  He  was,  therefore,  com- 
pelled to  build  a  number  of  storehouses  to  secure  these  goods  valued  at 
a  good  many  thousands  of  dollars,  which  buildings,  together  with  those 
formed  of  wood  and  canvas  for  the  personal  comfort  of  himself  and 
men,  made  quite  a  respectable  appearance  as  a  mountain  village.  As 
the  location  was  an  excellent  one,  directly  on  the  line  of  the  Overland 
Stage  and  Express  Companj^,  owned  and  operated  by  TVells,  Fargo  & 
Co.,  and,  as  there  was  an  abundance  of  wood  and  water  close  at  hand, 
it  was  not  very  long  before  others  not  directly  connected  with  the 
work  on  the  grade  were  attracted  there,  and  a  stream  of  others  follow- 
ing in  their  wake.  In  a  short  time  a  busy  town  sprang  up  as  if  by 
magic  in  their  midst.  Its  population  was  similar  to  that  of  all  rapid 
railroad  to\>Tis.  The  wild,  adventurous  men  and  women  who  had  fol- 
lowed the  building  of  the  road  from  its  inception  and  j^eopled  all  of  its 
**  cities ''  as  they  appeared  and  disappeared  found  a  lodgment  here. 

410 


•  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  411 

From  Omaha  they  passed  into  Platte  City  ;  thence  to  Julesburg ;  from 
Julesburg  to  Che3^enne;  from  Cheyenne  to  Laramie;  from  Laramie  to 
Green  E-iver  City,  and  from  Green  River  they  now  poured  into  Bear 
River  City.  Business  of  all  kinds  was  for  a  while  exceedingly  brisk. 
Stores,  containing  the  varied  supplies  incidental  to  frontier  life, 
abounded.  Likewise  saloons  and  bar-rooms,  gambling  shops  and  dance 
houses  and  "hurdy-gurdies,"  and  those  of  a  still  more  disreputable 
character  flashed  their  scarlet  lights  along  the  midnight  paths  of  men. 
I  am  confident  that  the  worst  elements  of  all  these  railroad  towns  gath- 
ered there  and  gradually  bestowed  upon  this  town  a  reputation  for  dark 
and  murderous  deeds  unsurpassed  by  any  on  the  line  of  the  road. 
Human  life  was  held  in  no  greater  esteem  than  that  of  the  lower  order 
of  creation.  Scarcely  a  da}'^  passed  that  did  not  witness  its  destruction. 
The  pistol  as  usual  was  the  arbiter  of  fortune,  and  men  were  shot  and 
killed  at  the  least  provocation.  Bands  of  murderous  cut-throats  and 
thieves  roamed  through  the  town  subsisting  upon  their  prey  like  wild 
beasts.  Drunken  orgies  always  ended  in  human  slaughter.  Honest 
workmen  were  assassinated  on  their  way  from  the  grade  to  the  town 
and  robbed  of  their  hard  earnings.  Men  plying  their  trades  and  shop- 
keepers were  compelled  to  go  heavily  armed  at  all  times  to  protect  their 
lives  and  property.  A  poor  barber,  after  his  day's  labor,  was  waylaid 
and  killed  for  the  result  of  his  day's  work,  and  his  body  mutilated 
because  but  19  cents  were  found  upon  his  person.  The  reputation  of 
the  town  at  length  became  so  bad  that  business  was  at  a  standstill  and 
merchants  prepared  to  abandon  it.  Finally,  aroused  by  this  condition 
of  affairs,  and  a  murder  more  foul  and  brutal  than  all  before,  and  the 
appeal  of  the  editor  of  a  newspaper  that  had  been  established  in  the 
town  and  was  engaged  in  the  effort  to  purify  the  social  atmosphere  by 
a  bold  demand  upon  the  people  to  arise  and  defend  themselves,  the 
better  class  of  the  population  began  the  endeavor  to  devise  means  to 
stem  this  tide  of  lawlessness  and  in  a  measure  at  least  to  restore  order 
and  protect  human  Ufe.  This,  however,  was  no  easy  task.  For  months 
the  town  had  been  controlled  by  these  bands  of  lawless  men,  and  they 
alone  seemed  united  and  determined.  The  citizen  at  first  moved  cau- 
tiously, for  fear,  as  an  individual,  of  exciting  the  wrath  of  the  banditti, 
who  would  not  hesitate  to  burn  his  storehouse  and  murder  him  after- 
ward for  his  temerity. 

The  first  act  was  an  attempt  at  organization  by  the  establishment 
of  a  temporary  form  of  city  government  and  the  election  of  officers. 


412  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS.  ' 

Colonel  Johns,  who  had  commanded  a  regiment  of  California  volun- 
teers during  the  war,  was  chosen  mayor,  and  ptenarj  powers  granted 
him  to  enforce  order.  Other  offices  were  fiUed  by  good  men  and  true, 
and  a  body  of  police  appointed  and  sworn  to  perform  their  duty  to 
preserve  the  peace. 

Their  first  notable  act  was  the  arrest  and  incarceration  of  a  number 
of  these  desperate  outlaws,  and  in  the  darkness  of  the  night  succeeding 
some  of  them  were  seized  by  a  vigilance  committee,  and  ex|3iated  their 
crimes  by  a  halter.  This  act  on  the  part  of  the  outraged  citizens  pro- 
duced a  momentary  consternation  among  the  outlaws,  and  as  the  citi- 
zens were  now  fuUy  aroused  and  on  the  alert,  they  did  not  attempt 
instant  revenge,  but  speedily  sent  for  reinforcements  from  the  desper- 
ados along  the  line,  who  responding,  swiftl}"  to  the  call,  marched  upon 
the  town  in  the  dead  of  night  to  the  number  of  300  and,  uniting  with 
those  already  domiciled  at  Bear  River,  began  the  destruction  of  the 
town  by  burning  the  calaboose,  after  releasing  the  prisoners,  the  post- 
office  and  express  buildings  and  some  others,  including  the  newspaper 
office,  upon  which  they  vented  their  rage  by  destroying  the  press,  type 
and  all  other  paraphernalia  of  a  country  printing  office,  and  by  seizing 
the  editor  and  hanging  him  by  the  neck  until  they  concluded  he  was 
dead,  but  whose  life  was  most  miraculously  saved  by  being  secretly  cut 
down  by  one  of  the  band  whom  he  had  signally  served  upon  some 
previous  occasion  at  a  distant  point  along  the  line,  and  who  happened 
to  recognize  him  at  a  most  opportune  moment. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  affairs  when  daylight  dawned  upon 
that  beleaguered  mountain  city  of  Bear  River.  The  citizens,  although 
at  first  dismayed  by  the  sudden  appearance  of  the  large  band  of  out- 
laws and  the  speedy  destruction  of  public  and  private  property,  did  not 
despair.  Knowing  that  the  time  had  come  when  the  question  of 
supremacy  must  be  settled  one  way  or  the  other,  and  feeling  that  the 
further  security  of  life  and  property  depended  upon  their  determined 
action  in  meeting  and  dispersing  this  band  of  outlaws,  whose  hands 
were  red  with  the  blood  of  murder  and  kindred  crimes,  they  immedi- 
ately proceeded  to  organize  a  force  to  overcome  them  and  drive  them 
from  the  town.  The  mayor  called  upon  all  good  citizens  to  unite 
instantly  and  attack  the  marauders.  They  bravely  responded,  seiz- 
ing all  the  arras  at  their  command  and  taking  temporary  possession  of 
those  offered  for  sale  in  the  stores  and  gun  shops,  and,  obtaining  a  full 


VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  HANGING  DESPERADOES, 
413 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  415 

supply  of  ammunition,  they  hastened  to  the  mayor's  office,  formed  in 
battle  array,  and  under  his  command  marched  immediately  to  meet 
the  enemy.  They  were  not  desperadoes,  it  is  true,  but  they  were  stal- 
wart mountain  men,  many  of  whom  had  faced  death  on  the  battle-field 
with  the  painted  savage  and  on  the  long  march  over  the  torrid  plains 
and  amid  the  deep  snow  fields  of  mountain  heights.  Others  had 
tracked  wild  beasts  to  their  lairs  and  conquered  in  a  hand-to-hand 
fight.  Some  were  trappers ;  some  miners,  and  among  them  were  many 
brave  3^oung  men  seeking  their  fortunes  in  the  far  "West,  whose  all, 
including  wife  and  children,  lay  behind  them,  and  they  would  not 
quail  before  the  outlaws,  though  perhaps  it  might  be  their  first  encounter 
with  a  whistling  bullet.  Besides,  defeat  now  meant  the  total 
destruction  of  the  town  and  the  loss  of  everything. 

The  friends  of  law  and  order  had  likewise  been  reinforced  by  men 
at  work  on  the  grade,  anxious  to  avenge  the  blood  of  their  murdered 
companions,  and  they  were  not  slowto  respond  to  the  call  of  the  mayor. 

This  force,  now  ready  for  the  fray,  proceeded  at  once  to  charge 
upon  the  outlaws,  who,  likewise,  comprehending  their  danger  from  the 
bold  uprismg  of  the  citizens,  had  forced  all  of  their  kindred  in  the  town 
into  their  ranks,  and  now  awaited  the  attack  with  composure,  trusting 
to  their  desperate  qualities  as  fighting  men  for  success.  In  fact,  it 
must  be  said  in  their  favor  that  they  did  not  attempt  to  fly  upon  our 
approach,  but  first  began  the  engagement  by  firing  upon  the  advancing 
column.  This  fire  was  instantly  returned,  and  quite  a  number  of  the 
outlaws  dropped  from  their  ranks  upon  the  ground.  Following  this 
response  quickly  by  another  determined  fire  immediately  thereafter,  at 
the  command  of  Colonel  Johns,  a  charge  was  made  upon  them,  so  swift 
and  sure  as  to  strike  them  with  consternation,  and  they  immediately 
fled  to  the  mountains,  carrying  off  a  portion  of  their  wounded.  A  few 
refused  to  run,  and  one  especially,  as  brave  a  man  as  ever  lived,  after 
discharging  all  the  loads  from  his  revolver,  fought  desperately  with  his 
empty  pistol  until  overpowered  and  captured.  I  afterward  became 
personally  acquainted  with  him  when  he  had  been  taken  to  Salt  Lake 
City  for  trial.  His  bravery  excited  the  admiration  of  all,  and  such  was 
the  love  of  that  quality  by  the  men  of  the  mountains,  that  many  of  them 
united  in  a  request  for  his  liberty,  especially  after  it  became  known  that 
he  was  drawn  into  it  by  misrepresentations.  His  name,  I  think,  was 
Hank  Smith  or  Frank  Smith,  and  he  afterward  became  a   respectable. 


416  ECHOES    FKOM    TIIE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

law-abiding  citizen  of  South  Pass  City,  engaged  in  the  business  of  min- 
ing for  gold  quartz. 

Having  escaped  to  the  mountains,  later  m  the  da\^  they  sent  to 
Colonel  Johns  a  request  for  surgeons  to  attend  their  Tvounded,  and 
such  was  the  kindness  of  heart  of  this  brave  man,  that  he  permitted 
them  to  go.  On  their  return  they  brought  a  message  from  the  outlaws 
stating  that  their  numbers  had  been  reinforced,  and  that  the  citizens  of 
Bear  Kiver  must  remove  their  women  and  children,  as  they  purposed 
to  burn  the  town  that  night. 

Measures  were  immediateh'  adopted  to  meet  this  emergency  if  it 
should  occur,  and  a  telegram  was  forwarded  to  General  Morrow,  com- 
manding the  United  States  troops  at  Fort  Bridger,  stating  the  condi- 
tion of  affairs  and  asking  military  aid  to  restore  order.  As  night  drew 
on  honfires  were  built  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  with  a  dead  line 
established,  with  orders  to  the  guard,  stationed  all  along  the  base,  to 
shoot  any  one  crossing  it  who  refused  to  halt.  The  night  passed, 
however,  without  further  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  outlaws  to  attack 
or  injure  the  town  or  its  inmates,  and  with  the  morning's  dawn  came 
General  Morrow,  with  a  corapan\'^  of  troops,  who  relieved  the  citizens 
from  further  mUitary  duty  within  the  bounds  of  Bear  River  City. 
But  few  of  the  outlaws  were  captured,  as  they  made  their  escape 
during  the  night.  Separating  into  small  bodies  they  scattered  along 
the  line  of  the  road. 

The  troops  from  Fort  Bridger  did  not  long  remain  on  guard  duty 
in  the  town.  They  returned  in  a  few  days  to  their  |X)st,  but  peace, 
order  and  security  of  life  and  property  reigned  complete  at  Bear  River 
Cit^'^  as  long  as  it  maintained  its  corporate  authority.  Of  course,  like 
all  other  railroad  towns  of  similar  character,  its  life  and  prosj^erity  did 
not  long  remain.  "We  are  told  that  ephemera  die  all  at  sunset  and 
that  no  insect  of  this  class  has  ever  sported  in  the  beams  of  the  morn- 
ing sun.  So  with  the  ephemeral  towns  along  the  mountain  line  of 
railroad.  They  were  the  sudden  growth  of  a  noonday  prosperity, 
lived  only  in  the  afternoon  of  life  and  died  at  its  sunset.  They  never 
lived  long  enough  to  enjoy  the  glow  of  a  morning  prosperity,  from 
which  to  draw  the  buoyant  strength  and  settled  firmness  of  age  and 
advancement.  Bear  River  City  died  like  all  the  rest  of  the  short- 
lived railroad  towns,  and  its  graves  lie  unmarked  beneath  the  shadow 
of  nature's  monumental  pUes. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUlfTAINS.  417 

After  the  close  of  the  difficulties  at  Bear  Kiver,  which,  occurred  early 
in  the  month  of  December,  1868,  I  boarded  the  west-bound  mail  coach 
to  return  to  my  headquarters  at  Salt  Lake  City.  It  was  about  nine  in 
the  evening  that  I  took  my  seat  on  the  high  deck  of  the  coach.  Inside 
Avere  nine  passengers,  including  a  physician  from  Denver,  and  a 
Baptist  preacher  and  wife  on  their  Avay  to  San  Francisco.  The 
preacher  was  a  large,  fleshy  man,  weighing  nearly  300  pounds,  and 
his  Avife  a  small  delicate  lady,  whose  avoirdupois  was  less  than  a 
hundred.  My  companion  on  the  high  deck  seat  was  a  Mormon  sub- 
contractor under  ]^ounnan,  on  the  grade^  returning  to  Salt  Lake 
City. 

On  the  driver's  box  sat  Sage  Collier,  Avho  had  driven  an  overland 
coach  for  a  number  of  years  and  Avas  considered  by  the  company  as 
one  of  its  most  experienced  and  trustAvorthy  employes.  Beside  him 
sat  a  man  named  Murphy,  a  horseshoer  in  the  employ  of  the  company, 
whose  business  it  Avas  to  go  from  station  to  station  along  that  division 
of  the  line  shoeing  its  horses.  Among  the  inside  passengers  Avere  other 
ladies  besides  the  minister's  wife.  The  air  Avas  shrewd  as  Ave  started  a 
little  after  nine  o'clock  on  our  long  drive  through  the  mountains,  and 
it  Avas  generally  observed  that  Ave  Avould  ere  long  encounter  a  severe 
snowstorm.  The  night  Avas  very  dark ;  neither  moon  nor  stars  Avere 
shining,  and  to  add  to  our  discomfiture,  but  a  little  ways  on  the  road 
the  light  in  the  coach  lamps  expired  for  lack  of  oil.  The  road,  however, 
Avas  a  straight  one  for  some  distance,  and  the  horses  had  traveled  over 
it  so  many  times  before,  that  Ave  felt  perfectly  safe,  though  the  dark- 
ness obscured  our  Avay.  Besides,  Ave  had  every  confidence  in  our  driver 
w^ho,  as  before  remarked,  had  been  long  in  the  employ  of  the  company, 
and  was  knoAvn  as  a  sober,  intelligent,  skillful  driver.  So  Ave  jogged 
along  Avith  our  blankets  wrapped  about  our  greatcoats,  bidding  defiance 
to  the  chill  night  air.  Stopping  at  a  small  Mormon  village  to  change 
horses,  and  having  been  recognized  by  the  postmaster,  he  approached 
the  side  of  the  coach  and  presented  me  Avith  a  large  bottle  of  Valley 
Tan  Avhisky,  remarking  that  it  would  "  help  to  keep  the  cold  out." 
After  refreshing  ourselves  I  handed  the  bottle  to  my  Mormon  com- 
panion, who  placed  it  in  the  capacious  pocket  of  his  overcoat  for  safe 
keeping. 

We  proceeded  on  our  Avay,  enlivening  the  journey  Avith  songs, 
stories  and  narratives  of  border  life,  as  Avas  the  custom  of  travelers 


418  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

until  another  ten  miles  were  passed  and  another  change  of  horses 
made.  The  road  from  this  point  was  not  so  fine  as  that  already  trav- 
ersed, and  frequent  lurches  of  the  coach  warned  us  of  our  rough, 
mountain  way..  We  were  ascending  the  road  that  led  over  Bear  River 
Mountain,  and  the  air  grew  colder  each  moment  that  we  advanced. 
This  road  was  what  is  called  a  "  dugway,"  and  was  rendered  neces- 
sary by  the  steep  sides  of  the  mountain.  It  was  a  roadbed  on  the 
mountain  made  bv  a  vertical  cut  in  its  side  with  a  base  or  bed  at  risrht 
angles,  of  sufficient  width  for  a  coach  to  pass  safely  over.  Just  below 
this  was  another  cut  of  somewhat  similar  character,  but  more  in  the 
form  of  a  large,  wide  gutter,  to  receive  and  carry  off  the  water,  to 
prevent  the  washmg  away  of  the  roadbed,  the  extreme  edge  of  which 
was  likewise  protected  by  stones  and  logs  wherever  they  could  be 
obtained.  As  we  began  to  climb  this  mountain  road,  the  driver, 
who  was  a  very  pleasant-spoken  young  man,  remarked :  "  I  did  not 
want  to  drive  the  coach  to-night,  and  I  begged  very  hard  of  another 
man  on  the  line  to  take  my  place,  but  he  refused,  and  I  had  to  go ! " 

I  asked  why  he  did  not  wish  to  drive  on  this  particular  night  and 
whether  on  account  of  illness.  He  replied  :  "  I  can  not  say  why.  I 
had  no  particular  reason.  I  was  not  sick,  but  on  the  contrary,  felt  as 
well  as  ever  in  my  life.  Still  I  had  misgivings  and  thought  I  was 
going  to  have  a  hard  night  of  it.  But  now  1  am  glad  I  came,  because 
I  have  had  such  pleasant  companions.  Between  the  songs  and  the 
stories  the  night  thus  far  has  passed  pleasantly,  much  more  so  than  I 
expected." 

It  was  at  this  point,  however,  that  he  gave  us  a  piece  of  informa- 
tion we  did  not  relish.  It  was,  that  the  brake  on  his  coach  was  broken 
and  well-nigh  useless.  As  we  had  a  long  descent  to  make  on  the  other 
side  of  the  steep  mountain,  always  difficult,  it  was  now  rendered  dan- 
gerous by  the  broken  brake.  Having,  however,  comforted  ourselves 
with  the  assurance  that  we  could  get  off  and  walk  at  the  worst  places, 
we  dismissed  the  subject  momentarily,  especially  as  he  broke  into 
a  song  which  the  Mormons  sing,  a  sad  sort  of  a  dirge  all  about  their 
first  entry  into  the  great  valley,  their  trials  and  tribulations  and  their 
final  triumph  in  the  establishment  of  their  church  in  the  remote  wil- 
derness. He  had  learned  it  from  long  contact  with  the  Mormon  people, 
and,  possessing  a  good  voice,  he  sang  it  with  fine  effect.  Afterward  he 
narrated  much  of  his  experience  with  that  people,  extolled  their 
virtues  and  condoned  their  offenses.     He  told  them  he  was  born  in  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN?  419 

State  of  Illinois ;  how  he  had  been  led,  by  an  adventurous  spirit  and 
the  hope  of  gaining  wealth,  from  his  early  home  to  these  distant 
mountains;  the  Indian  fights  in  which  he  had  participated;  how  long 
he  had  been  in  the  service  of  the  Overland  ExpKess  Company,  begin- 
ning with  Ben  HoUiday  and  continuing  ever  since;  numerous  instances 
of  personal  bravery  during  his  career  of  stage  driving,  and  many  other 
exploits  of  his  frontier  life,  expressed  in  his  quaint  and  earnest  style  of 
speech,  that  proved  of  deep  interest  and  captivated  his  listeners.  He 
concluded  the  story  of  his  life  by  saying  :  "  Gentlemen,  this  is  my  last 
drive  on  a  stage  coach.  I  have  been  engaged  in  the  business  long 
enough.  I  don't  mean  to  find  fault  with  it,  because  I  have  made  a 
considerable  sum  of  money  out  of  it.  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  are  my 
bankers.  Instead  of  drawing  my  money  at  the  end  of  each  month  and 
spending  it  as  most  of  the  other  boys  do,  I  have  been  saving  mine, 
and  I  have  now  to  my  credit  in  that  institution  several  thousand  dol- 
lars. I  say  this  is  my  last  drive.  "When  I  reach  Salt  Lake  City  I  shall 
throw  up  my  situation,  buy  me  a  lot  of  books,  go  up  to  Box  Elder,  hire 
a  teacher  and  go  to  studying  like  a  good  fellow  and  see  if  I  can  make 
a  man  of  myself  ! " 

•  These  were  the  identical  words  uttered  by  this  brave  boy  of  the 
mountains,  who  had  met  and  triumphed  over  the  adversities  of  life,  who 
had  performed  well  the  perilous  part  to  which  he  had  been  assigned 
and  now  proposed  to  leave  his  wild  life,  and,  by  a  course  of  study,  to 
subordinate  the  physical  to  his  mental  manhood  and  rise  higher  still  in 
the  scale  of  human  advancement. 

These  remarks  set  us  to  thinking,  and  after  a  few  words  of  encour- 
agement to  the  boy  as  to  his  new  life  and  purposes,  we  relapsed  into 
silence  and  listened  to  the  strain  of  the  coach  as  it  slowly  toiled  toward 
the  moutain  top. 

The  air  which  was  chilly  when  we  began  the  ascent  was  now  posi- 
tively cold,  and  we  complained  of  its  intensity,  whereupon  Sage  Col- 
lier remarked  :  "  Gentlemen,  we  will  soon  be  over  this  mountain.  We 
win  then  descend  into  the  valley  beyond,  where  it  will  be  warm  and 
pleasant ! "  What  prophetic  words  were  these,  uttered  by  the  hum- 
blest and  yet  greatest  of  us  all ! 

We  were  now  proceeding  quietly  on  the  way,  the  silence  of  the 
night  among  the  hills  unbroken,  save  by  the  creaking  of  the  coach 
wheels,  and  the  voice  of  the  driver  occasionally  speaking  a  word  of 


420  ECHOES  from:  the  kocky  mountains. 

encouragement  to  the  horses.  I  think  we  had  progressed  two-thirds 
of  the  way  toward  the  highest  point  we  were  tp  climb  along  this  duo- 
way,  when,  suddenly,  without  warning  of  any  kind,  a  tremor  seized  the 
driver  and  he  cried  to  the  man  with  him  on  the  driver's  box  these 
words,  which  I  distinctly  recall :  "  Murphy,  take  the  lines  of  the  wheel 
horses  ;  I  can  not  hold  them !"  He  then  turned  quickly  around  to  me 
and  said:  "Colonel,  watch  out;  we  are  going  over!"  At  the  same 
instant  I  thought  I  saw  him  stand  on  the  side  of  his  box  read\^  to 
jump  from  the  coach  as  it  lurched  over  the  side  of  the  mountain  road. 
Observing  this  action  on  the  part  of  so  experienced  a  driver  as  Sage 
Collier  and  knowing  full  well  that  a  driver  never  jumped  from  his  seat 
unless  the  danger  was  imminent,  without  a  moment's  delay  I  threw 
aside  my  blanket  and  with  a  sudden  impulse  jumped  out  as  far  as  I 
was  able,  into  the  darkness  and  blackness  of  the  night,  down  the  mount- 
ain side.  I  remember  being  impressed  with  the  idea  that  it  was 
imperative  to  leap  as  far  out  as  possible  so  as  to  avoid  being  caught  by 
the  tumbling  coach.  I  also  remember  striking  the  mountain  side  and 
rolling  down  over  and  over  until  I  struck,  with  a  sharp  pain  in  my  right 
arm,  against  a  big  rock  or  boulder  that  lay  across  my  path.  I  was 
senseless  for  a  moment  but  instantlv  recovered  on  feelinjr  a  sudden  but 
tremendous  weight  or  pressure  upon  my  body.  Close  beside  me  lay 
the  body  of  a  man;  I  arose  and  looked  at  him.  It  was  my  companion 
upon  the  high  deck.  I  s{X)ke  to  him,  but  he  answered  not.  I  shook  him 
with  my  left  hand  and  he  gave  no  sign  of  life.  I  said  to  him  finally, 
"  Are  you  alive  ?  If  so,  answer  me !  "  It  was  very  dark  and  I  could 
not  see  his  eye ;  but  I  heard  him  say  in  a  low  tone.  "  Yes,  I  am 
alive."  "Are  you  badly  injured?"  I  asked.  With  the  utmost 
gravity  he  replied:  "Xo,  I  am  not  much  hurt — but  the  whisky's 
gone.  Judge  I " 

Xotwithstanding  the  smart  of  my  injured  arm,  and  the  danger 
and  uncertainty  surrounding  us,  I  could  not  repress  my  mirth  but 
laughed  immoderately  at  the  ludicrous  remark.  We  proceeded  up  the 
hillside  to  where  the  overturned  coach  lay,  and  found  Murph^^  there 
engaged  in  disentangling  the  horses  from  their  gear,  and  the  prostrate 
coach,  which  in  its  fall  had  been  caught  on  the  bed  of  the  "  washout " 
and  lay  on  its  right  side.  Murphy  had  clung  to  the  upper  side  of  the 
coach  as  it  went  over,  the  side  on  which  he  was  seated,  and  escaped 
injury.     The  inside  passengers  likewise,  although  much  shaken  up. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    3I0UJsTAINS. 


421 


were  uninjured.  There  was  a  universal  cry  for  release,  from  the  con- 
fined travelers,  as  we  approached  and  spoke  to  Murphy.  To  add  to 
their  discomfort  we  found  that  the  only  means  of  egress  from  the 
coach  estopped  by  the  big  Baptist  preacher  who,  attempting  to  escape 
through  the  window  of  the  coach,  the  door  having  been  so  sprung  by 
the  accident  as  to  prevent  its  opening,  w^as  too  large  in  his  girth  to  be 
safely  delivered,  and  in  the  effort  to  force  himself  through,  had  but 
still  more  tightened  the  grasp  of  the  window  about  his  bowels,  and  he 
hung  like  Mahomet's  coffin — 'twixt  heaven  and  earth. 

It  was  with  con- 
siderable difficulty 
that  w^e  finally  releas- 
ed him  from  his  un- 
pleasant predicament 
and  w4th  his  aid  res- 
cued the  others  frotTi 
their  painful  position. 
When  all  were  out 
of  the  coach  we  at- 
tempted to  elevate  it, 
but  found  that  our 
strength  w^as  inade- 
quate. We  knew  how- 
ever, that  if  the  east- 
bound  coach  was  on 
time  it  would  pass 
us  within  an  hour, 
and  bv  their  aid  we 

.    ,  ,",  111,  "I'M  NOT  MUCH  HURT,  BUT  THE  WHISKEY 

might  be  enabled  to  js  gone,  judge." 

resume  our  journey. 

Of  course  we  could  do  but  little  without  our  driver,  and  so 
we  began  to  look  for  him.  We  called  his  name  and  begged  him  to 
return  to  our  assistance.  We  sent  men  out  into  the  thickets  surround- 
ing us  to  search  out  if  possible  his  hiding-place  and  induce  him  to  come 
to  cur  aid.  We  believed  that  his  absence  could  alone  be  accounted  for 
on  the  supposition  that  he  conceived  he  had,  by  this  mishap,  killed  or 
severely  wounded  some  of  the  passengers,  and  that  the  survivors,  some 
of  whom  were  returning:  from  the   engfajrement  at  Bear  Kiver  with 


422  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIJfS. 

their  arms,  might  be  so  incensed  at  the  act  as  to  shoot  him,  to  escape 
which  he  had  taken  flight  to  the  thickets  oa  the  mountains.  But 
Sage  Collier  did  not  return.  K'o  voice  reached  him  on  the  hill- 
side, no  hand  drew  him  forth  from  his  hiding-place  in  the  mountain 
cedars,  and  he  came  not  of  his  own  accord  to  aid  us  in  our  efforts  to 
regain  the  road. 

As  it  continued  cold  and  chilly,  and  the  coach  was  no  longer  a 
refuge  for  the  lady  passengers,  we  were  forced  to  gather  materials  for 
a  roaring  bonfire,  and  soon  around  this  midnight  camp  the  coach  load 
of  wrecked  travelers  sat  and  stirred  the  fire  and  watched  the  sparks  fly 
upward  to  the  clouds,  wondering  what  had  become  of  our  lost  pilot  and 
captain,  and  when  the  east-bound  coach  from  Salt  Lake  City  would 
make  its  appearance. 

It  was  not  long  before  we  heard  the  welcome  sound  of  the  wheels 
of  the  coach  grating  on  the  hard  frosty  road,  and  soon  its  lights  were 
seen,  for  like  the  wise  virgins  of  old  they  had  oil  in  their  lamps,  and  burn- 
ing. On  arriving  at  the  scene  of  our  accident  all  alighted  from  the 
coach  and  gave  a  willing  hand  to  help  us  out  of  our  difficulties.  By 
the  aid  of  lanterns  we  were  enabled  to  comprehend  the  extent  of  the 
disaster  and  provide  the  means  for  its  repair.  By  means  of  logs 
and  stones  and  the  leather  mail  sacks  from  both  coaches  we  managed 
to  construct  a  rude  inclined  plane  on  which  to  roll  the  coach  from  the 
"washout"  where  it  had  fallen,  to  the  "dugway."  After  its  com- 
pletion, the  next  step  was  to  right  the  coach,  which  lay  on  its  side,  and 
begin  the  work  of  transferring  it  to  the  road  above.  All  hands  now  being 
ready,  the  word  was  given  to  "  lift  altogether  "  and  the  coach  began  to 
rise.  On  placing  my  hand  beneath  the  iron  rim  of  the  Concord  coach, 
I  felt  something  wet  and  clammy,  and  as  it  had  been  elevated  about 
two  feet,  a  treasure  box  was  placed  thereunder  to  preserve  the  eleva- 
tion while  the  parties  rested  a  moment  and  renewed  their  hold.  Upon 
holding  my  hand  to  the  light  I  noticed  that  it  was  discolored,  and 
a  further  inspection  proved  it  to  be  blood.  Returning  instantly  to 
the  side  of  the  coach  with  a  light,  the  body  of  the  driver  was  seen 
h'ing  beneath  it,  and  the  wet,  clammy  substance  on  my  hand  was  the 
blood  and  brains  of  Sage  CoUier.  TTe  gently  drew  him  forth  and  laid 
him  on  the  ground  by  the  campfire  where  the  physician  from  Denver 
made  an  examination  which  disclosed  the  fact  that  he  was  killed  by  the 
falling  coach,  the  iron  band  of  the  rim  having  crushed  his  skullbone 


ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  423 

from  which  his  brains  exuded.  Poor  fellow!  No  wonder  he  did  not  hear 
our  voices  and  appeals  to  return  to  our  assistance.  No  wonder  he  was 
not  found  by  our  searchers  in  the  thickets  of  cedar.  No  wonder  he 
did  not  again  return  to  be  our  captain  and  our  guide,  lie  had  passed 
over  the  mountain  into  the  valley  of  shadows  and  was  resting  where 
it  was  pleasant  and  warm  amid  the  songs  of  birds  and  the  scent  of 
sweet  flowers !  It  must  have  been  that  he  had  fallen  from  his  seat 
before  the  coach  turned  over,  having  been  seized  by  sudden  illness,  or 
that  he  was  caught  b}^  the  falling  coach  as  he  jumped  from  his  box, 
and  was  killed  instantly  by  the  sudden  blow.  His  body  was  cold 
when  we  laid  it  beside  the  campfire,  and  the  doctor  remarked  that  his 
death  must  have  been  instantaneous.  His  last  words  w^ere  prophetic. 
He  had  indeed  taken  his  last  ride  on  the  stagecoach.  His  premonitions 
of  danger  before  starting  from  Bear  River  City  were  all  fulfilled.  He 
would  drive  no  more. 

We  strapped  his  body  to  our  righted  coach  and  resumed  our  jour- 
ney on  the  winding  road  around  Bear  Mountain.  All  the  next  day  his 
blood  that  oozed  from  the  ghastly  wound  dripped  with  the  rain  and 
the  sleet  and  spattered  the  door  knob  and  window-panes  of  the  coach 
he  had  once  commanded,  and  trickled  on  the  garments  of  those  who 
but  yesterday  were  no  fuller  of  life  than  this  dead  brave  boy  ! 

Although  we  were  again  on  the  road  with  our  faces  set  toward 
the  valley  of  rest,  our  troubles  and  our  dangers  were  not  yet  at  an 
€nd.  It  is  true  we  had  mended  the  brakes  in  an  indifferent  manner 
and  obtained  a  little  oil  for  our  lamps,  which,  however,  did  not  last 
very  long.  Still  we  descended  Bear  Mountain  safeh',  and  soon  stretched 
away  for  Echo  Caiion.  Our  trouble,  however,  arose  from  the  igno- 
rance of  the  driver  of  the  mountain  roads.  ,  Our  driver  was  Murphy, 
the  companion  on  the  box  with  Collier  before  his  death,  who  had 
kindly  volunteered  to  drive  the  coach  into  Salt  Lake  City.  We  were 
totally  unacquainted  with  the  powers  of  Mr.  Murphy  in  this  new  rdlcj 
but  as  our  choice  was  that  of  Hobson's,  we  were  compelled  to  pro- 
ceed under  his  (j^re  and  protection.  To  add  to  the  difficulties  of  our 
situation,  a  severe  snow  storm  set  in  just  after  we  got  upon  the  road 
again,  and  a  snow  storm  in  the  mountains  is  no  ordinar}^  affair.  Every 
one  who  has  encountered  such  a  storm  will'  bear  testimony  to  the  fact 
that  a  foot  and  more  of  snow  will  fall  in  an  hour.  I  have  beheld 
snow-flakes  as  large  as  the  palm  of  a  man's  hand,  and  such  a   fall  of 


424c  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

snow  soon  obliterates  all  traces  or  outlines  of  a  road.  Dependence 
must  now  be  placed  on  the  knowledge  of  the  driver  and  the  natural 
instinct  of  the  animals,  and  it  is  frequently  better  to  trust  entirely  to 
the  animals. 

Our  progress  was  slow  and  toilsome,  and  the  driver's  only  guide, 
as  we  ascertained  afterward,  was  the  ruts  of  the  road.  I  had  tempo- 
rarily exchanged  seats  with  one  of  the  inside  passengers  and  was 
dozing  away,  dreaming,  |jerhaps,  of  a  warm  bed  and  good  cheer,  when 
I  was  suddenly  aroused  by  the  stopping  of  the  coach  and  a  call  from 
the  driver  for  volunteers  to  go  out  into  the  snow  and  "  tramp  for  the 
ruts!"  Murphy  informed  us  that  he  had  lost  the  road  and  was 
wandering:  on  dano^erous  ground,  and  the  onlv  wav  now  before  us  to 
regain  it  was  to  tramp  around  in  every  direction  until  we  found  it. 
As  no  time  was  to  be  lost  in  making  the  attempt,  the  snow  growing 
deeper  each  moment,  a  number  of  us  immediately  alighted  and  began 
the  arduous  task.  I  found  the  snow  at  least  three  feet  deep,  but,  as  it 
was  dry  and  light,  we  were  enabled  to  move  about  in  it  much  easier 
than  I  anticipated.  Still  it  was  very  hard  work,  and  made  the  sweat 
roll  from  my  face.  The  white  snow  had  given  a  tinge  of  light  to  the 
earth,  and  we  found,  by  comparing  notes,  that  we  were  about  to  enter 
on  the  dug-way  of  Echo  Canon.  The  driver  had  lost  the  road,  and 
wandered  to  the  right  of  it  for  some  distance.  Had  he  continued  on 
we  would  shortly  have  been  pitched  into  a  gulch,  from  which  there 
would  have  been  no  resurrection.  After  wading  around  for  some 
time,  perhaps  an  hour,  a  voice  rang  out  upon  the  frosty  night  air, 
"  Here  it  is  I "  "We  hastened  in  the  direction  of  the  sound,  and,  sure 
enouffh,  there  it  was.  He  had  been  the  luckv  one  to  first  find  it,  and 
we  voted  him  a  hero.  He  bore  his  honors  meekly,  and  was  glad  to 
resume  his  seat  in  the  coach,  which  had  now  returned  to  the  track. 
The  driver,  however,  fearful  of  again  losing  his  way,  insisted  that  two 
of  us  should  go  ahead  of  the  coach  and  keep  tramping  for  the  ruts,  and 
give  the  signal  for  him  to  halt  when  we  could  no  longer  feel  them 
beneath  our  feet.  The  first  lot  fell  to  myself  and  a  passenger,  whom  I 
did  not  know,  and  we  kept  it  up  for  an  hour  until,  all  wearied  out,  we 
sought  rest  in  the  coach.  Two  others  took  our  places  and  went  on 
with  the  weary  work.  "We  were  now  in  Echo  Canon,  and  soon  we 
would  strike  the  dug- way  on  the  sides  of  the  mountain,  more  dangerous 
in  winter  than  any  other  point  along  the  whole  line  of  the  road  we 
had  traversed. 


435 


ECHOES    FROM  THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  427" 

There  was  a  particular  spot,  also,  on  this  dug-way  more  perilous 
than  any  other.  The  vertical  cut  was  faced  with  solid  rock  masonry 
laid  by  the  convulsive  hand  of  nature  when  she  fashioned  that  lofty 
range. 

The  roadbed  had  been  washed  by  successive  storms  until  it  was 
just  broad  enough  for  a  coach  to  pass  successfully.  When,  however, 
the  road  was  ice-bound  and  slippery  with  frozen  sleet  the  danger  of 
sliding  into  the  canon's  depth  was  increased  manyfold.  The  spot  was 
well  known  to  most  overland  travelers,  as  several  coaches  had  been 
hurled  into  the  canon's  depths  and  dashed  to  pieces  on  the  flinty  rocks 
in  the  stream  below.  When  we  reached  the  neighborhood  of  the  per- 
ilous spot  some  in  the  coach  began  to  narrate  the  story  of  its  danger 
and  the  loss  of  the  coaches  on  previous  occasions.  This  served  to 
sharpen  the  fears  of  those  unaccustomed  to  such  dangers.  The  little  wife 
of  the  ponderous  Baptist  minister  was  greatly  terrified  as  we  reached 
the  spot  and  some  one  cried  out :  "  If  the  road  is  slippery  we  are  bound 
to  go  over!"  "If  the  road  was  slippery?  How  could  it  be  other- 
wise?" some  one  exclaimed.  With  a  margin  less  than  a  foot  between 
the  off-wheel  and  eternity,  and  the  hard  frozen  ground  covered  with 
dry  snow,  how  could  it  be  otherwise  than  slippery  and  perilous  ?  And 
so  the  Uttle  wife  of  the  preacher  cried  out  amid  her  tears  and  her  fears: 
"  O  what  shall  we  do  ?  What  shall  we  do?"  Her  magnificent  look- 
ing husband  replied  :  "  Well,  my  dear,  we  will  take  every  precaution, 
and  the  balance  we  will  leave  in  the  hands  of  Providence ! "  These 
were  brave  words,  quite  suggestive  of  the  truly  Christian  character  of 
the  great  divine.  He  concluded  his  impressive  reply  to  the  fears  of  his 
little  shivering  wife  with  the  rather  pointed  request  directed  especially 
to  me :  "  Colonel  won't  you  get  out  and  hold  the  coach  down  ?" 
Now,  one  would  naturally  suppose  that  a  man  of  his  great  weight 
would  be  much  better  calculated  to  "  hold  a  coach  down "  than  one 
who  weighed  nearly  100  pounds  less,  for  while  my  weight  was  a  little 
over  200  pounds,  his  was  nearly  300.  Still  he  was  generously  inclined 
as  well  as  brave  and  orthodox.  He  was  willing  to  exchange  places 
with  a  layman.  In  fact,  he  was  willing  to  bestow  aU  the  honors  on 
me,  although  acquainted  but  a  few  hours.  Nevertheless  I  accommo- 
dated him ;  went  out  from  my  sheltered  booth  in  the  coach  into  the 
storm  of  the  elements  to  aid  the  center  of  gravity  in  "  holding  down 
the  coach."      There  was,   however,   one  consolation.     If  the  coach 


428  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

slipped  over  the  edge  of  the  road  into  the  abyss  below,  there  was  no 
reason  why  I  should  go  with  it,  being  on  the  outside.  I  feel  confident 
that  I  should  have  let  go  my  hold  on  its  side'  and  remained  above. 
However,  no  such  sacrifice  was  required.  The  coach  wheels  may  have 
passed  uncomfortably  near  the  crumbling  edge,  but  they  remained  on 
the  roadbed  and  we  rolled  safely  on.  By  the  early  dawn  we  reached 
the  home  station  at  the  mouth  of  Echo  Canon,  where  a  rude  breakfast 
awaited  as.  I  was  so  worn  out  with  the  severe  labor  of  the  night  that 
I  could  onh'  swaUow  a  cup  of  black  coffee  to  break  the  long  fast.  The 
storm  had  ceased,  the  winter  sun  had  again  shone  forth,  and  all  that 
da}"  we  journeyed  slowly  through  Parley's  Cafion,  and  in  the  darkness 
of  the  succeeding  night  we  reached  Salt  Lake  Citj',  greeted  b}'  its 
twinkling  lights,  thankful  in  our  hearts  that  we  had  again  escaped  the 
dangers  of  the  mountain  journey  and  its  storms,  safe  again  in  the  arms 
of  the  lovino:  ones  who  awaited  our  return  with  warm  hearts  and  tears 
of  thankful  rejoicing. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

SHOSHONE  FALLS— SNAKE  KIVER  NEAR  FORT  HALL— FISHIN(J  FOR  TROUT  — THE 
WONDERING  DUCKS  UPON  THE  WATERS,  WHO  HAD  NEVER  BEFORE  SEEN 
THE  FACE  OF  A  WHITE  MAN  — BELL'S  LANDING  ABOVE  SHOSHONE  FALLS- 
STORY  OF  THE  LONE  MINER  ON  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  GREAT  FALLS  — DASHED 
TO  RUIN  OVER  THE  FALLS. 

While  briefly  sojourning  at  Fort  Hall,  oti  the  banks  of  Snake 
River,  in  Idaho  Territory,  on  my  way  to  the  famous  Shoshone  Falls,  I 
engaged  for  a  few  hours  in  the  diversion  of  fishing  for  trout  in  that 
tortuous  stream.  The  river  flows  through  a  canon  far  below  the 
surface  of  the  earth,  and  its  banks  rise  almost  vertical  from  the  water's 
edge.  Eocks  project  from  either  wall,  and  at  intervals  a  stunted 
growth  of  mountain  cedar  springs  therefrom,  almost  at  right  angles. 

The  canon  through  which  the  river  runs  is  deep  and  narrow, 
appearing  as  if  the  lightnings  had  cleft  the  mountains  and  an  ancient 
thunderbolt  had  ripped  open  the  dry,  barren  earth  to  form  a  pathway 
for  the  winding  stream. 

With  rod  and  line  I  clambered  down  the  rocky  wall,  clinging  to 
flint  and  tree,  and  cast  my  line  upon  the  still  waters  with  the  hope  of 
capturing  a  mess  of  trout  for  our  supper,  l^othing  is  more  j^alatable 
than  the  delicious  yellow  trout  that  abound  in  mountain  streams. 
Their  fame  is  world-wide,  and  the  fiber  of  their  meat  so  delicate  as  to 
excite  the  praise  of  the  epicure.  I  did  not  tarry  long  before  landing 
a  splendid  specimen  of  the  tribe,  and  others  followed  in  quick 
succession.  Then  there  came  a  pause  in  my  piscatorial  labors.  While 
thus  awaiting  their  reappearance,  my  rod  overhanging  the  stream,  I 
noticed,  approaching,  a  large  flock  of  wild  ducks,  borne  lazily  on  the 
bosom  of  the  tide.  All  the  surroundings  were  as  quiet  as  a  cemetery. 
In  fact,  it  seemed  as  if  it  was  a  vast  grave  dug  within  the  depths  of  the 
earth,  in  which  nature  itself  was  buried.  Man,  the  atom,  was  but  a 
fly  speck  on  its  incorporeal  body.  !N"ot  a  sound  disturbed  the  silence  that 
rested  like  a  shroud  on  the  earth  and  air.  In  this  voiceless  temple  of 
the  gods  the  devotees  were  dumb.  Not  a  wave  of  tremulous  air 
disturbed   the  equilibrium  of  the   atmosphere.     ]N"o  note  of  bird  or 

429 


430  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

bee  or  buzzing  fly  smote  the  air  to  echo  forth  a  fretful  sound.  No 
rippling  of  leaves  upon  the  boughs  of  overhanging  trees  wafted  a 
tremor  along  the  connecting  lines  of  sound.  'It  was  as  perfect  and 
complete  as  if  the  silence  of  everlasting  eternity  rested  upon  the  wild, 
unbroken  spot.  It  was  a  wilderness  of  the  solitudes  that  cast  its 
speechless  shadow  on  the  tomb  of  eternity.  The  mountain  stream,  at 
other  points  so  rough  and  rugged,  here  was  as  placid  as  an  infant's 
dream.  The  silence  was  broken  only  by  my  thoughts  and  the  flecking 
of  my  trout  line.  Seldom,  indeed,  perhaps  never  before,  had  the  hand 
of  the  white  man  cast  a  line  upon  its  waters  at  that  spot. 

The  ducks,  floating  silently  on  the  stream,  passed  near  the  shore 
line.  I  thought,  of  course,  upon  beholding  the  intruder,  they  would 
either  move  toward  the  center  of  the  stream  or  rise  on  swift  wing  and 
flee  from  his  sight.  Strange  to  relate,  they  did  neither,  but  kept 
straight  on  their  way  close  to  the  shore,  where  I  sat  perched  on  a  rock 
with  the  rod  in  my  hand.  Without  the  least  exhibition  of  fear  they 
passed  under  the  rod,  and  as  one  of  the  last  was  floating  beneath  it,  I 
could  not  resist  the  temptation  to  lower  the  rod  and  gently  pat  it  on 
its  back.  If  a  red  flame  had  shot  suddenly  before  it  from  out  of  the 
water  it  appareutly  could  not  have  been  more  astonished.  It  did  not 
fly  nor  dart  swifth"  awa}'^ ;  it  seemed  to  rise  up  out  of  the  water  and 
stand  on  its  feet ;  to  open  wide  its  e^^es  in  wonder  at  the  sudden  move- 
ment and  touch  upon  its  back,  and  to  peer  with  an  inquiring  look  at 
the  object  that  had  moved  upon  the  waters  like  unto  its  own  life 
motions,  and  ruffled  its  shining  feathers.  A  few  ripples  broke  around 
it  and  then  it  passed  on  to  join  the  flock  that  had  floated  some  yards 
beyond.  It  was  to  me  an  interesting  study.  It  had  no  fear  of  man, 
lits  natural  enemy,  because  it  had  never  before  in  its  wild  haunts  beheld 
his  face  or  form,  or  felt  the  touch  of  his  wand  of  power.  It  felt  no 
dansrer  because  it  knew  none,  and  was  therefore  sociable  in  its  wild 
innocence  and  ignorance. 

Continuing  our  journey  toward  the  falls,  we  soon  left  behind  us 
the  more  placid  portions  of  the  stream  and  the  little  feathered  flocks 
that  floated  on  its  bosom.  Passing  over  that  broad  interminable  waste 
of  dead  land  where  nothing  of  vegetable  life  is  seen,  save  the  sage 
bush  and  the  still  ruder  growth  of  grease  wood,  a  dreary  solitude  of 
barren  earth  that  stretches  in  every  direction  far  beyond  the  utmost 
vision  of  the  human  eye,  in  whose  domain  no  spear  of  grass  or  shrub^ 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  431 

or  tree  of  living  green  ever  gladdens  the  eyes  of  mortal  man  as  he 
wanders  through  its  trackless  withered  waste,  we  approached  in  due 
time  the  object  of  our  journey.  Surrounded  by  this  weary  desert,  this 
treeless,  grassless,  dreary  waste  that  can  alone  be  likened  unto  the  life- 
less sandy  waves  of  Sahara,  imprisoned  on  all  sides  by  precipitous  cUffs 
and  unsurmountable  walls  of  rock  that  loom  up  like  solid  masonry, 
rock  piled  on  rock  within  the  shadow  of  nature's  wildest  scenery,  where 
lofty  pinnacles  of  glittering  sandstone  and  minarets  of  flint  and  rocky 
basalt  towers  rest  on  buttressed  walls  of  granite,  where  the  eye  grasps 
the  territory  of  wild  grandeur,  and  the  mind  becomes  absorbed  in 
nature's  marvelous  works,  there  we  found  Shoshone  Falls. 

Standing  on  the  grim  edge  of  Shoshone  Canon  above  the  falls, 
you  gaze  down  into  a  broad,  round  chasm,  more  than  YOO  feet  deep, 
and  nearly  a  mile  in  diameter.  Far  beyond  you,  for  many  miles, 
stretch  the  Snake  Plains  just  described,  and  in  the  distance  loom  the 
blue  outUne  of  mountains  that  form  one  of  their  boundary  lines.  The 
cliffs  of  the  gorge  descend  neai'ly  perpendicularly  from  our  feet  to  the 
level  of  the  stream  that  flows  beneath  its  battlemented  walls,  smooth 
and  unfretted,  until  it  rolls  into  the  labyrinths  of  rocks  and  lava,  ere  it 
finally  plunges  over  its  steep  precipice.  It  is  a  wild,  barren  yet  pictur- 
esque scene.  Desert,  frowning  walls  and  green  waters  encompass  your 
vision.  Barren  cliffs,  broken  only  by  clumps  of  stunted  trees  clinging  to 
the  walls,  and  dark  gray  shadows  upon  river  and  rock,  make  the  scene 
at  this  point  one  of  almost  sullen  gloom,  unrelieved  save  by  the  blue 
and  white  foam  that  flashes  in  shining  spray,  as  the  waters  strike 
the  rocks  and  boulders  that  intercept  its  pathway  to  the  cataract. 

The  descent  to  the  level  of  the  stream  above  the  falls  is  made 
through  a  narrow  tortuous  trail  among  rough  blocks,  and  ledges  of 
lava,  and  along  which  you  must  carefully  lead  your  pack-mule  if  you 
would  reach  the  river's  edge  in  safety.  Here  j'^ou  pitch  your  tent 
beneath  the  overhanging  cliffs  that  shadow  the  rapids  of  the  lower 
falls  of  Shoshone.  You  hear  constantly  a  dull  throbbing  sound,  the 
same  that  greeted  your  ears  long  before  you  approached  the  canon's 
edge,  and  which  seemed  to  proceed  from  the  depths  of  the  earth 
beneath  you,  a  sound  like  that  of  distant  cannon.  You  find  that  this 
sound  is  produced  by  the  boom  of  huge  masses  of  rock  falling  from 
above  upon  rock  piled  on  rock  below,  that,  by  the  action  of  the 
weather,  have  been  loosened  from  their  hold  upon  the  caiion  walls. 


432  ECHOES   FROM   THE   ROCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

One  of  the  remarkable  characteristics  of  these  falls  is  the  con- 
gregated evidence  of  the  vast  flood  of  lava  that  during  the  period  of 
desiccation  flowed  down  upon  and  deluged  the  whole  Snake  Basin. 
Standing  upon  the  edge  of  the  chasm,  above  the  firet  fall,  you  see  the 
"  Three  Tetons  "  and  the  "  Three  Buttes,"  from  whose  convulsed  depths 
in  the  ancient  volcanic  jjeriod  poured  for  300  miles  the  rivers  of  lava 
that  overspread  the  once  fertile  plains. 

All  the  placid  stream  above,  far  beyond  the  headlands  and  the 
distant  mountains  where  it  takes  its  rise  in  the  myriad  springs  from 
melting  snow  fields  and  frozen  lakes  that  burst  and  overflow  their 
banks  and  gush  in  cataracts  to  the  gulf  below,  where  flows  the  winding 
stream ;  all  the  vast  volume  of  uncurbed  waters  gather  and  converge 
at  this  point  for  the  first  mad  leap  over  a  precipice  100  feet  high,  and 
panting  as  if  to  renew  its  strength  and  increase  its  volume  or,  as  if 
held  in  check  bv  a  mvsterious  hand,  or  hesitating  to  take  the  fearful 
plunge,  finally  makes  its  bound  into  the  watery  abyss  300- feet  below. 

What  a  scene  for  the  student  of  wild  untamed  Xature  I  What  a 
school  for  the  artist  hand  to  train  its  cunning  I  What  a  moment  for 
the  mind  to  dwell  upon  nature's  marvel  of  majesty  I    • 

Thought,  itself  is  lost  in  the  profundity  of  the  awful  abyss  that 
lies  far  down  below,  as  you  stand  upon  the  summit  of  the  mighty 
basalt  wall  and  watch  the  descending  torrent  as  it  pours  down  into 
the  yawning  gulf;  watch  the  mists  of  spra}'  from  the  seething  waters 
that  form  into  clouds  rolling  against  the  walls  of  the  mighty  chasm  and 
melting  in  the  viewless  air ;  watch  the  frail  frostwork  of  silver  and  ermine 
blended  with  the  purple  and  gold  of  the  sunshiny  rays  that  shoot  down 
the  chasm  from  the  waves  of  blue  above,  wearing  a  coronet  of  pris- 
matic beauty  to  rest  upon  the  stormy  brow  of  the  roaring  cataract ; 
watch  the  waters  of  the  great  river  regather  their  volume  and  hasten 
away  from  the  wild  scene  and  the  deafening  roar  of  the  mad  torrent 
on  and  away  over  rocks  and  boulders  where  the  ages  have  left  them 
in  their  deep  repose,  where  the  white  foam  melted  into  drops  of  peace- 
ful water,  mingling  again  with  a  placid  stream  such  as  we  beheld  ere 
it  takes  the  first  wild  plunge  over  Shoshone  Falls ! 

Lovers  of  majesty,  draw  nigh  to  these  falls  of  the  untrodden 
waste  and  wilderness  of  barren  rock  and  soil !  Worshipers  of  Xature's 
awful  power,  stand  upon  the  summit  and  gaze  upon  your  shrine  below ! 
Ye  who  reverence  the  mvsterious  and  trace  the  image  of  God  in  the 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  433 

awful  outline  of  nature's  works,  come  within  the  shadow  of  these 
towering  clilfs  and  precipices,  these  minarets  and  shafts  of  mystery, 
these  monuments  of  Time's  untrodden  depths,  and  worship  the  God  of 
Nature  !  Nowhere  else  in  the  world  will  ye  find  it  s  counterpart.  No- 
where else  on  the  globe  will  ye  behold  such  overwhelming  evidences 
of  Nature's  grand  achievements,  a  gem  of  sublimity  in  the  midst  of 
savage  scenery,  a  sparkling  diadem  on  the  brow  of  desolation,  a 
coronet  of  nature's  wildest  grandeur  glowing  in  the  rude  solitudes  of 
an  unbroken  barrenness  and  continuity  of  sterile  waste. 

Niagara,  pouring  its  mighty  flood  of  waters  in  a  giant  torrent  over 
a  broad,  rocky  bed,  and  the  Bridal  Yeil  of  falling  waters  in  wild  To- 
semite  stir  the  beholder  with  awe  and  reverence.  Having  once  stood 
within  the  sublime  shadow  of  Shoshone  Falls  man  draws  the  compar- 
ison in  his  mind's  eye,  and  those  works  of  nature  fade  away  into  the 
spray  of  their  rainbow  mists  beside  the  irresistible  power  and  the  over- 
whelming majesty  of  the  rude  and  wild  Shoshone,  with  its  islands, 
rapids,  cascades  and  rainbows  ! 

At  Bell's  Landing  the  river  is  600  feet  wide,  and  below  widens  to 
1,200.  Three  great  rocks,  the  Three  Sisters,  stand  like  sentinels  above 
the  turbid  water,  guarding,  as  it  were,  the  entrance  to  the  rapids. 
Bell's  Landing  is  a  mighty  rock  Avhich  juts  out  into  the  river  where  the 
water  is  deep  and  smooth,  and  3'et  lies  immediately  above  where  the 
rapids  begin  and  the  cascades  fall,  before  the  great  stream  takes  its 
long  leap  into  the  abyss. 

Of  course  there  is  always  a  legend  or  romance  hanging  about  such 
works  of  nature.  In  this  case  the  romance  deepens  into  the  reality. 
Tom  Bell  was  a  bold  miner,  who  could  guide  a  boat  and  progress 
through  adverse  currents,  which  men  of  less  nerve  and  courage  would 
not  undertake.  One  portion  of  the  vast  cataract,  resembling  its  lofty 
prototype  of  the  Yosemite,  has  been  called  the  "  Bridal  Yeil."  One 
day,  in  his  daring  search  for  gold,  he  ventured  to  an  island  just  above 
the  brink  of  Bridal  Yeil  Falls,  and  in  true  accord  with  his  "  eye  of 
prospect "  and  judgment  formed  by  long  experience,  he  found  on  the 
lower  side  a  good"  pay"  bar.  He  would  take  his  little  boat  from  the 
landing,  shove  out  into  the  strong  current,  and  by  a  few  dexterous 
strokes  of  his  oars,  land  on  the  upper  part  of  the  island.  With  pick 
and  shovel  and  "rocker"  he  would  pass  the  long  hours  of  the  day 
gathering  gold,  and  when  the  declining  rays  of  the  sun  fell  behind  the 

28 


434  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

mountains,  warning  him  of  the  approach  of  darkness,  he  aaouIcI  pull 
his  boat  up  stream  and  reach  his  rocky  landing.on  the  shore.  His  fame 
spread  far  and  wide.  Many  came  to  witness  his  courage  in  tem^Dting 
the  waves,  but  none  dared  to  follow  his  fearless  example.  He  had 
built  a  little  cabin  on  the  south  shore,  where  he  lived  the  life  of  a  her- 
mit, noted  for  his  industry,  and  where  he  dispensed  his  rude  hospitality 
to  those  who  occasionally  visited  his.  wild  and  lone  retreat. 

In  addition  to  liis  labor  at  the  gold  bar  on  the  island,  he  ensrasred 
whenever  the  opportunit}'^  offered,  to  earn  a  pecuniar}^  reward  in  the 
occupation  of  ferryman,  and  safely  conveyed  those  across  the  upper 
stream  where  business  or  inclination  led  them  thither. 

One  day  two  confiding  Chinamen  entered  his  boat  to  be  fenied 
to  the  opposite  shore.  It  was  his  final  effort.  From  the  turbid  stream 
he  rowed  within  the  mysterious  realm  that  lies  beyond  "  the  Styx." 
Whether  he  became  careless  from  long  tempting  the  fates,  or  whether, 
in  the  supreme  moment,  when  his  giant  arm  was  baffling  the  waves  and 
the  frail  boat  was  rounding  their  crests,  pulling  its  way  to  the  opposite 
shore,  an  oar  snapped  in  twain,  and  in  an  instant  whirled  him  within 
their  mad  depths,  no  man  will  ever  know.  All  that  is  known  can  be 
related  in  a  moment.  He  and  his  boat  and  the  yellow-skinned  Orients 
went  over  the  falls,  sinking  to  rise  no  more.  But  the  great  rock  which 
was  his  landing  place,  the  island  where  he  strove  for  wealth,  and  the 
cabin  wherein  he  passed  his  lonely  hours,  still  remain,  preserving  his 
name  and  appropriateh'^  designating  them  as  his  own.  TVithin  the  cabin 
are  still  retained  his  "  rocker,"  fragments  of  the  boat  which  took  the 
fearful  leap,  and  other  relics,  which  were  Tom  Bell's  sole  companions, 
and  to-day  the  only  memorials  of  his  lone  and  silent  life. 

^*!N"ight,"  says  a  distinguished  explorer,*  '"is  the  true  time  to 
appreciate  the  full  forc3  of  the  scene  surrounding  these  falls. 
The  broken  rim  of  the  basin  profiled  upon  a  mass  of  drifting 
clouds,  whose  torn  openings  revealed  gleams  of  pale  moonlight  and 
bits  of  remote  sky  trembling  with  misty  stars.  Intervals  of  light  and 
darkness  hurriedly  followed  each  other.  For  a  moment  the  black 
gorge  would  be  crowded  with  forms.  Tall  cliffs,  ramparts  of  lava, 
the  mgged  outlines  of  islands  slumbering  on  the  cataract's  brink, 
faintly  luminous  from  breaking  over  black  rapids,  the  swift  white  leap 
of  the  river,  and  a  ghostly,  formless  mist  which  the  cailon  Avails  and 

*  Clarence  King. 


'^—SHOSHQNt  '  fALLS 


I 


THE  LONE  MINER  GOING  OVER  THE  SHOSHONE  FALLS. 
435 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIlfS.  437 

far  reach  of  the  lower  river,  were  veiled  and  unveiled  again  and  again 
and  then  a  mist  of  black  shadow,  where  nothing  could  be  seen  but 
the  breaks  in  the  black  clouds,  the  rim  of  the  basin,  and  a  vague 
white  center  in  the  universal  darkness." 

Such  are  Shoshone  Falls  by  night ;  but  the  view  by  daylight  is 
sufficient  to  inspire  the  loftiest  feelings  of  reverence  for  the  sublime 
woi'ks  of  nature  which  lead  us,  like  a  child  led  by  the  hand  of  its 
father  from  Nature  up  to  Nature's  God. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

LOST  IN  THE  MOUXTAIXS  OF  MOXTAXA  — WA:NT)ERINGS— THE  MDfER'S  CAMP— MF 
GUIDE  — THE  WILD  BEAST  IN'  THE  JUNGLE- THE  "PARD'S  REGRET"  — THE 
GO^'ERXOR'S  SEARCH  PARTY  — THE  TELEGRAM  TO  SALT  LAKE  CITY  -  RESCUK 

It  was  a  bright  morning,  late  in  the  summer  of  1868  that  I  boarded 
"Wells,  Fargo  &  Company's  mail  coach  at  Salt  Lake  City  for  Helena, 
Montana  Territory,  on  a  mission  of  important  Government  business. 
The  atmosphere  was  delicious,  the  air  fragrant  with  the  aroma  of  fruit 
and  flowers  which,  with  the  sparkling  dew  and  sunshine  on  tree  and 
shrub  and  waving  spear  of  grass,  charmed  the  senses  and  gave  new 
impulse  to  the  blood  bounding  through  our  veins. 

The  road  traversed  by  the  northern  mail-coach  was  at  many  points 
of  picturesque  beauty.  Rolling  gaily  out  of  Salt  Lake  City,  under  the 
practiced  eye  and  hand  of  an  old-time  driver,  the  clatter  of  the  wheels 
broke  the  stillness  of  the  quiet  city.  At  the  very  base  of  the  Wahsatch 
Range  with  its  snoyvs  eternal,  beneath  the  shadow  of  "  Ensign  Peak," 
which  Brigham  Young  declared  he  had  seen  in  a  vision  and  was  com. 
manded  by  the  Lord  to  halt  his  people  and  pitch  his  tent,  the  mail 
coach  moved  rapidly  along  at  the  rate  of  ten  miles  an  hour.  On  our 
left  and  almost  at  our  feet  la}"  the  shimmering  waters  of  Great  Salt 
Lake,  remaining  in  our  sight  for  nearly  one  hundred  miles  washing  its 
crystals  on  the  shore  line. 

The  green  spots  that  at  quite  equal  distances  for  many  miles  rose 
before  us  and  greeted  our  approach  with  offerings  of  ripe  fruit  and 
sparkling  fresh  water,  were  the  various  Mormon  settlements,  populated 
by  the  overflow  from  their  main  city  and  by  the  emigrants  from 
foreign  lands  who  had  been  assigned  by  the  leaders  of  the  Saints  to 
certain  laboi*s  tending  toward  the  upbuilding  of  the  church  and  its 
revenues. 

Proceeding  swifth^  through  Cache  Valley  and  crossing  the  caiion 
wherein  General  Conner  had  surprised,  in  the  dead  of  winter,  and  slain 
the  savage  tribe  that  for  years  had  menaced  the  peace  and  security 
of  the  settlers  of  that  region  ;  thence  from  Utah  to  Malad  Mountain 

438 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  439 

Gap,  in  the  southeastern  portion  of  Idaho,  the  initital  point 
of  John  Hailey's  line  of  stages  to  Boise  City  and  beyond;  thence 
through  Port  Neuf  Caiion,  the  scene  of  the  terrible  murder  of  a  coach 
load  of  miners  returning  to  their  homes  in  the  East,  by  the  bloodthirsty 
band  of  robbers,  styled  for  pirate  dignity,  road  agents,  past  Fort  Hall, 
the  scene  of  many  an  Indian  council,  and  over  the  tortuous  Snake 
River  ;  thence  over  the  Bannock,  the  swift  mountain  stream  on  whose 
banks  the  first  gold  discoveries  were  made  in  Montana,  and  which 
proved  but  the  beginning  of  the  far  famed  wealth  gathered  in  millions 
from  the  dry  beds  of  streams  that  once  as  mountain  torrents  had 
"washed  for  ages  the  riches  of  the  rocks  from  their  mineral  beds; 
thence  ceaselessly  by  day  and  night,  halting  only  at  the  home  stations  for 
food,  and  the  stock  ranches  for  change  of  horses,  we  hastened  over  the 
mountain  roads  and  through  the  defiles  of  the  rocky  boulders  that  lay 
in  huge  masses  at  many  points  on  the  upland  heights,  until  finally,  on 
the  morning  of  the  fourth  day  we  rolled  into  Yirginia  City,  at  that 
time  the  capitol  of  the  Territory,  nestled  in  the  heart  of  the  Big  Horn 
Range. 

It  was  small,  now,  both  in  population  and  business,  compared  to 
the  days  when  Alder  Gulch  was  pouring  its  long-hidden  Avealth  into 
the  lap  of  the  thousands  of  gold-seekers  who  had  flocked  there  from  all 
points  of  the  country  where  the  fame  of  its  riches  had  reached.  It 
was,  however,  the  seat  of  government  and  the  Territorial  oflRcers,  and 
tile  Supreme  Court  was  located  there,  and  many  lawyers  and  business 
men  remained.  Still  it  was  but  the  ghost  of  its  former  prosperity, 
and  a  relic  of  the  past.  The  vast  w^ealth,  amounting  to  many  millions 
had  l^een  gathered  ;  the  stream  was  exhausted,  and  the  tireless  tide  of 
humanity,  whose  lives  w^ere  consumed  in  their  adventurous  search  for 
gold,  had  passed  on  to  other  and  richer  fields.  Here  and  there  I  beheld 
bands  of  Chinamen  washing  over  the  tailings  of  the  famous  gulch, 
where  but  a  little  while  before,  the  white  man  swarmed  and  gathered 
his  gold  dustdaily,measured  by  hundreds  and  thousands  of  dollars.  As 
I  walked  over  the  bed  of  this  historic  stream  in  company  with  the  United 
States  marshal,  he  pointed  out  to  me  the  various  spots  of  interest  within 
its  borders.  Here,  a  lucky  man  gathered  in  a  week  a  fortune  that  many 
years  of  patient  industr}'"  could  not  acquire  by  the  slow  process  of  ordi- 
nary business.  There,  a  vast  nugget  of  solid  gold  was  washed  out  as 
the  reward  of  a  few  hours'  labor.     At  this  point  and  that,  marvelous 


440  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAlJfS, 

deposits  were  found,  and,  at  others,  men  slaved  without  rewartl  and 
toiled  for  weary  months  without  recompense-  Here,  a  poor  soul 
worn  out  with  continuous  disappointment,  while  his  more  fortunate 
neighbors  gathered  the  rich  spoils  of  the  ages,  overcome  by  his 
ill  success,  blew  out  his  brains  in  despair.  There,  a  man  having  gained 
great  wealth  was  robbed  and  murdered  b\'  thieves  who  lay  in  wait.  At 
another  point,  just  below  the  town,  where  the  richest  deposits  were  found 
and  the  discoveries  claimed  by  two  adverse  parties,  the  marshal  dis- 
closed the  spot  where,  as  a  peace  officer,  he  was  compelled  to  shoot 
down  six  men  while  quelling  a  riot  that  threatened  to  engulf  the  whole 
town  in  battle. 

This  officer  was  a  remarkable  man  in  many  respects.  How  gentle 
was  his  manner  and  quiet  his  speech!  How  soft  his  tones  and  how 
musical  his  voice !  How  magnanimous  to  foe,  how  faithful  to  friend  ! 
In  a  great  cit^'  filled  with  the  rude  elements  of  society,  where  knife 
and  pistol  were  the  prime  agents  for  the  enforcement  of  individual  will 
and  command,  and  a  stead}-  nerve  and  quick  sight  the  pre-requisites 
for  success  and  obedience,  where  violence  was  the  rule  and  murder  was  a 
pastime,  who,  unaware  of  his  dauntless  courage,  would  have  chosen 
this  quiet  gentle  spoken  man  as  the  one  man  who  could  stem  the  tide  of 
lawlessness  and  command  universal  obedience  to  his  will  and  dictation  ? 
Yet  such  was  his  fame.  "When  aroused,  no  ruffian  ere  withstood  his 
lightning  glare  or  the  quick  hand  that  s}ied  the  bullet  to  his  brain. 
His  blood  was  the  coolest,  his  nerve  the  steadiest,  his  hand  the  surest 
and  his  courage  the  most  undoubted  of  all  the  mountain  men  who 
trod  the  dry  bed  of  Alder  Gulch.  Xeil  Howie  sleeps  in  a  grave  far 
distant  from  the  scene  of  his  wonderful  deeds,  but  his  memory  is^een 
among  the  hills  and  valleys  of  the  Montana.  He  was  my  personal 
friend  and  I  feel  proud  of  this  privilege  to  record  the  grandeur  of 
character  of  this  hero  of  border  life. 

After  a  sojourn  of  a  few  days  in  Yirginia*  City,  I  joined  a  party 
of  ladies  and  gentlemen  who  proposed  to  visit  Bald  Mountain,  one  of 
the  loftiest  peaks  in  the  Big  Horn  Range,  adjacent  to  Yirginia  City. 
I  intended  to  ride  with  them  to  a  certain  }X)int  on  the  way,  and  then 
diverging,  proceed  to  a  mining  settlement  a  number  of  miles  beyond^ 
with  a  view  of  obtaining  some  testimony  very  important  in  a  matter 
of  public  interest  I  was  then  engaged  in  prosecuting.  The  day  was 
charming,  the  sun  shining  brightly  and   the  mountain   air  pure  and 


441 


LCHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    ilOL'XTAINS.  443 

invigorating,  as  our  gay  party  wound  in  and  among  the  foothills 
that  surrounded  the  base  of  the  lofty  range.  After  lunching  by  the  side 
of  an  icy  spring,  within  the  sljade  of  some  mountain  monarchs,  I 
bade  the  party  adieu  for  a  while,  promismg  to  rejoin  them  on  ray 
return  at  a  later  hour  in  the  day.  Although  it  was  my  first  visit  in 
that  section  and  I  was  but  little  acquainted  with  the  topography  of 
the  country,  yet  I  felt  confident  of  my  ability,  from  what  knowledge 
I  possessed  of  mountain  craft,  to  go  directly  to  the  objective  point 
from  the  directions  already  given  me,  without  subjecting  one  of  the 
party  to  leave  his  comrades  to  act  as  a  guide.  Besides  I  had  impor- 
tant reasons  for  going  aloUe,  connected  entirely  with  the  public  matter 
I  then  had  in  hand.  And  so  I  struck  out  in  the  full  hope  and  assur- 
ance of  soon  accomplishing  the  obj.ects  of  my  visit  and  rejoining 
the  gay  party  of  Government  officials  and  leading  men  of  the  city 
with  their  wives  and  sweethearts.  Schiller  has  told  us  that  "Fate 
hath  no  voice  but  the  heart's  impulse."  I  am  sure,  however,  that  the 
fate  which  was  in  store  for  me  had  no  voice  from  the  impulses  of  ray 
own  heart.  The  day  was  so  warm  and  pleasant  that,  on  starting 
forth  I  did  not  encumber  myself  with  an  overcoat,  and  consequently 
was  thinly  clad  for  the  exposure  that  awaited  me  ere  my  return.  I 
proceeded  on  ray  way  in  accordance,  as  I  supposed,  with  the  direc- 
tions given  me  as  to  the  location  of  the  little  mining  town  nestled 
among  the  mountains,  which,  unlike  the  cities  on  the  plains,  can  not  be 
distinguished  afar  off  by  tall  spires  and  church  steeples.  *  *  Pur- 
suing my  course  without  road  or  trail  or  blaze  to  mark  an  approach  to 
the  civilized  abode  of  man,  I  wandered  on  amid  its  vast  continuity  of 
hill  and  valley  until  finally  I  determined  within  my  own  mind  that  I 
had  failed  to  observe  some  point  of  instruction  and  had  diverged  from 
the  route  that  led  to  the  settlement.  I  then  endeavored  to  retrace  ray 
steps,  and  looking  toward  Bald  Mountain,  I  carae  suddenly  upon  the 
rira  of  a  deep  gulch  or  canon  that  seeraed  to  run  toward  that  emi- 
nence. I  descended  at  once  its  rugged  sides,  and  on  gaining  the  bot- 
tora  found  myself  amid  the  solitude  of  a  chasm  where  the  gloomy  , 
cypress  waved  its  spinous  branches  and  its  lofty  sides  obscured  the  sun 
and  the  surrounding  country.  Still  I  felt  that  ray  hope  of  extrication 
lay  in  pursuing  the  caiion,  which  I  believed  led  to  Bald  Mountain. 
Daylight  disappeared  and  stars  came  out  and  hung  like  lanterns  in  the 
skies.     There  was,   however,  no    moonlight.     Morning  dawned,*  and 


444  ECHOES   FBOM  THE   KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

with  its  first  faint  light  I  clambered  up  the  side  of  the  canon  b}'  a 
blind  trail  I  hapi>ened  to  strike.  I  was  in  the  same  continuity  of  hills 
and  valleys,  with  no  familiar  object  m  sight,  StiU  I  did  not  feel 
alarmed.  I  could  climb  the  divide^  and  from  its  lofty  height  would  be 
enabled  to  behold  a  vast  stretch  of  country  and  shape  my  course.  On 
reaching  its  summit,  however,  I  beheld  nothing  but  innumerable 
peaks  rising  one  above  another,  and  long  ranges  of  foothills,  inter- 
spersed with  innumerable  valle\'S.  Away  off  in  the  distance,  I  thought 
I  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  Madison  Biver,  and  once  on  its  banks,  I 
felt  assured  I  would  be  enabled  to  escape  from  mj  perilous  condition, 
for  now  the  cravings  of  hunger,  intensified  by  an  interminable  thirst, 
beset  me  and  added  to  the  extremity  of  the  hour.  So  I  passed  down 
the  wrong  side  of  the  divide,  and  each  step  I  took,  thinking  to  escaj^e 
from  the  wilderness  of  mountains,  but  carried  me  deeper  and  deeper 
into  its  mysterious  depths.  After  wandering  aimlessly  about  in  search 
of  water,  not  a  drop  of  which  had  passed  my  lips  since  I  parted  from 
my  friends  in  the  cool  shade  beside  the  icy  spring.  I  arrived  at  the 
conclusion  that  I  was  lost  amid  the  intricate  profundity  of  an  almost 
endless  range  of  mountains,  and  wandering  far  away  from  the  foot- 
prints of  civilization  in  a  country  given  up  to  wild  beasts,  savage 
Indians  and  still  more  savage  white  men  who  had  escaped  retribution 
for  their  crimes  by  flight  to  the  unpeopled  wilderness.  Only  those 
who  have  shared  a  similar  experience  can  know  the  feeling  that  takes 
possession  of  the  mind  when  fully  awakened  to  the  fact  that  you  are 
wandering  through  trackless  mountain  wUds  without  guide  or  com- 
panion, the  end  of  which  is  death,  after  days  of  pain  and  starvation, 
and  perchance  insanity,  unless  rescued  hy  a  timely  hand  or  circum- 
stance. Oh,  the  feeling  of  utter  loneliness  amid  the  vast  expanse  of 
mighty  upheaval — this  wide,  wide  range  and  continuity  of  rock  piled 
on  rock  until  the  bending  heavens  stoop  to  kiss  their  crowns !  So  lone 
and  pulseless  that  God  Himself  seems  not  there  to  be ;  and  j^et  withal 
"  the  visible  garment  of  God  I ''  Oh,  the  awful  stillness  that  each 
/noment  deepens  around  you !  Oh,  the  terrible  grandeur  of  untouched 
nature,  appalling  you  in  your  utter  insignificance — that  emblem 
and  shadow  of  Omnipotence;  the  veil  in  which  He  shrouds  His 
majest}'^ !  'Tis  at  such  a  shrine  and  altar  that  we  lose  thought,  even  of 
our  own  miseries  and  anxieties  and  kneel  in  humility  and  adoration, 

I  wandered  on  and   on  with  my   faithful   animal,  which,  like  all 
mountain  horses,  had  been  educated   to  climb  these   rugged   heights 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTxVINS.  445 

and  cling  like  goats  to  bush  and  jutting  rock.  It  had  fared  somewhat 
better  than  I,  though  neither  had  tasted  water  since  the  day  before — 
it  had,  however,  browsed  on  the  way  and  picked  up  considerable  of  a 
meal,  while  I  had  neither  food  nor  w^ater,  but  the  thirst  became  so 
intense  as  to  absorb  the  desire  for  food,  and  now  my  whole  wish 
was  for  water.  I  felt  that  I  must  have  water  or  perish  !  About  4 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  I  had  climbed  a  high  range  of  foothills  and 
saw  above  me  the  frozen  sheet  of  snow  on  the  mountain  summits.  I 
determined  at  once  to  reach  the  crest  and  obtain  the  ice,  which,  melt- 
ing in  my  mouth,  would  partially  assuage  the  thirst.  Setting  my 
horse's  head  in  that  direction  I  began  the  ascent,  inspired  with  the 
hope  of  temporary  relief,  at  least.  "When  within  a  few  hundred  feet 
of  tlie  frozen  snow-fields,  my  animal  trod  suddenly  upon  a  piece  of 
shale  rock,  and,  worn  with  fasting,  was  unable  to  respond  quickly  to 
the  natural  instinct  or  to  hold  himself  to  the  hillside,  and,  losing  bal- 
ance, fell  with  great  force  to  the  rocky  surface,  close  by  the  side  of  a 
huge  bowlder  against  which  my  back  and  right  side  lay,  with  my 
right  limb  wedged  under  the  horse's  prostrate  body.  I  thought  I 
heard  the  bones  crack  as  I  touched  the  earth  and  felt  the  huge  weight 
on  my  limb,  and  a  sudden  dart  of  pain  from  thigh  to  ankle-joint.  As 
soon  as  it  was  possible  the  horse  regained  his  feet,  and  I  attempted  to 
do  likewise.  The  patient  animal,  with  almost  a  mind,  seemed  con- 
scious that  some  evil  had  befallen  me  and  stood  close  beside  me,  with 
pitying  ej^es  that  seemed  to  say:  "  I  am  sorry  for  what  I  have  done, 
but  I  could  not  help  it ;  for  I,  too,  am  weak  from  want  of  food  ! "  I 
finally,  by  the  assistance  of  the  bowlder,  raised  myself  from  the 
ground  and  found  that  my  thigh  and  knee-joints  had  both  received 
a  wrench,  and  my  foot  and  ankle  a  severe  sprain.  But,  notwith- 
standing the  great  pain  which  had  so  suddenly  convulsed  my  frame, 
the  pain  of  the  thirst  was  still  more  terrible,  and  so  I  started  on  my 
hands  and  one  limb,  dragging  the  wounded  along,  to  gain  the  frozen 
snow.  After  what  seemed  an  age  of  agony  I  reached  its  rim  and  broke 
off  and  swallowed  pieces  of  frozen  snow,  in  which  mud  and  bits  of 
leaves  were  mixed.  As  I  expected,  this  gave  me  partial  relief  and 
assuaged  the  burning  thirst  for  a  little  while — but  a  little  while ;  for, 
after  painfully  reaching  the  horse  and  as  painfully,  by  the  aid  of  the 
bowlder,  remounting,  I  again  descended  the  mountain.  Before  reach- 
ing its  base,  the  thirst  returned  with  renewed  severity.     For  the  first 


446  ECHOES    FKU-M     THE     KOCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

time  a  feeling  of  despair  stole  over  me.  My  limb  began  to  swell  and 
it  was  with  great  difficult}^  I  retained  mv  seat  in  the  saddle.  Xi^ht 
was  approaching  and  its  antecedent  shadows  swept  over  the  foothills, 
and  in  tremulous  waves  rolled  down  to  the  broad  vallev  bevond. 
There  was  nothing  to  guide  me ;  no  human  footprint,  no  blaze  on  rock 
or  tree,  no  landmark  or  signboard  in  the  vast  wilderness  to  silently 
say,  "  Go  this  way  or  that ! "  Of  course,  it  was  a  mere  questicm  of 
time  in  my  present  condition,  unless  rescued,  when  both  lone  horse 
and  rider  should  furnish  food  for  the  fierce  mountain  lions  whose 
homes  we  had  invaded.  These  mountain  lions  are  so  strong  and 
powerful,  that,  having  killed  a  mountain  sheep  weighing  300  pounds, 
a  single  one  would  bear  it  many  miles  to  its  den  in  some  cleft  of  the 
rocks  or  chasm  in  the  lofty  mountain  side.  What  defense  could  I  then 
make  if  pursued  and  overtaken  ? 

Should  I  escape  wild  beasts  might  I  not  fall  into  savage  hands  { — 
for  at  that  time  the  settlements  were  cons tantlv  raided  bv  roving:  bands 
of  Indians  bent  on  murder  and  robbery.  And  if  such  a  fate  should 
not  befall  me,  Avas  it  not  probable  that  under  cover  of  darkness, 
attracted  by  the  glare  of  my  midnight  fire,  the  white  foe  might  steal 
upon  me  and  shoot  me  down  all  unconscious  of  m\'  fate  ?  These  were 
not  pleasant  thoughts  that  obtruded  themselves  as  I  entered  the  shadows 
of  the  broad  vallev  that  lav  at  the  foot  of  this  loftv  ran^e.  As  I  had 
no  where  to  go  and  as  each  jar  of  the  animal's  tread  caused  additional 
pain,  I  permitted  him  to  follow  his  own  inclination  and  he  browsed 
slowly  along,  here  and  there  picking  a  mouthful  of  rude  mountain 
vegetation.  And  thus  we  journeyed  on  until  about  9  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  when  suddenly  my  poor  beast  that  ofttimes  had  apj)eared  as 
if  inclined  to  lie  down  and  rest  after  our  long,  weary  tramp  of  daylight 
and  darkness,  suddenly  raised  his  head,  pricked  his  ears  and,  as  if 
belabored  with  the  Fash,  started  forward  on  a  brisk  trot  that  racked 
my  wounded  limb  to  the  very  marrow.  I  restrained  his  impetuosity 
as  well  as  I  was  able,  but  it  was  not  of  much  avail;  onward  he  would 
go  in  spite  of  all  I  could  do.  I  do  not  remember  at  this  day  how  long 
we  thus  traveled.  Racked  as  I  was  with  pain  it  seemed  an  age.  It 
may  not  have  been  an  hour.  It  was  very  dark.  Xeither  moon  or 
stars  were  shining.  I  thought  it  a  race  in  the  dark  with  a  phantom, 
and  for  aught  I  know  this  noble  beast,  destined  to  preserve  my  life 
and  restore  me  to  my  friends,  may  have  been  safely  led  by  some  spirit 


LOST  IN  THE  MOUNTAINS  OF  MONTANA. 
417 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIKS.  449 

horse  along  this  path  of  darkness,  that  which  we  ascribe  to  the  occult 
force  of  instinct.  True  it  is,  however,  he  brought  me  to  the  banks  of 
a  purling  stream,  whose  bright  ripples,  breaking  over  rock  and  granite 
bowlder  were  flowing  eastward  in  the  dark.  Down  to  the  river's  edge 
we  went,  and  horse  and  rider  drank  from  the  white  waters  of  the 
Madison  at  the  same  instant  with  bowed  heads. 

After  quenching  my  thirst  the  desire  for  food  returned,  and  would 
have  proved  insupportable  had  not  the  severe  pain  of  my  swollen 
limb  claimed  the  greater  attention.  One  thing  I  determined  upon — 
not  to  lose  sight  of  the  river. 

My  animal  remained  in  the  water  sometime,  and  it  was  with  diffi- 
culty I  urged  hirti  forward.  On  gaining  the  opposite  bank  at  a  little 
distance  from  the  edge  of  the  stream  my  horse  struck  into  what 
seemed  to  be  a  "  blind  path."  As  it  was  impossible  for  me  to  alight 
and  gather  the  materials  to  build  a  fire  and  make  a  night-camp,  I  con- 
cluded to  move  slowly  along  until  daylight  when  there  would  be  less 
fear  from  wild  beasts,  and  then  give  my  horse  and  self  a  rest.  I  felt 
assured  that  if  I  followed  the  stream  I  should  find  some  way  of  escape 
from  the  solitudes.  We  had  proceeded  some  distance  when  suddenly 
there  broke  upon  my  ear,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream  which  at 
this  point  was  quite  narrow,  a  most  unearthly  sound.  It  seemed  to  be 
a  cross  between  the  bay  of  a  bloodhound  and  the  roar  of  a  lion.  That 
it  was  the  voice  of  a  wild  beast  I  did  not  doubt.  My  horse  stood  still 
and  I  breathless,  not  knowing  what  to  do.  And  thus  we  awaited,  I 
cannot  tell  how  long,  until  hearing  it  no  more  I  concluded  that  what- 
ever it  was  it  had  disappeared  and  we  had  escaped.  Gaining  courage 
I  again  moved  forward  and  had  proceeded  perhaps  two  hundred  yards 
or  more,  when  the  same  terrible  sound  proceeded  from  out  of  the  dark- 
ness just  across  the  stream  and  much  nearer  than  before.  My  horse 
stood  still  and  trembled  with  fear  from  natural  instinct  of  danger.  I 
expected  each  moment  the  bushes  to  part  and  a  wild  beast  to  spring 
upon  us. 

With  that  hope  which  never  dies  in  the  breast  of  man,  no  matter 
how  forlorn  may  be  his  condition,  the  hope  to  escape  the  imminent 
danger  and  prolong  my  life  in  this  world,  I  thought  to  escape  by  sacri- 
ficing the  horse,  and  so  I  concluded  to  move  close  up  to  a  tree  and 
should  the  beast  appear,  to  alight  from  my  animal's  back  into  the 
branches.     Of  course  in  my  condition  I  should  have  died  of  starvation 


450  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

in  the  tree  or  fallen  from  weakness  to  the  ground  and  thus  become  an 
easy  prey  to  the  cowardly  coyote.  But  what  will  not  man  attempt  in 
such  an  emergency  to  prolong  his  life  ?  Unable  to  walk,  destitute  of 
food,  unarmed  save  with  a  pair  of  derringer  pistols,  many  miles  indeed 
from  a  base  line  of  civilization,  with  no  outstretched  human  arm  to 
save  me,  with  no  possible  hope  of  escape  from  death  in  my  present 
condition — ^}^et  I  stiU  clung  to  life  and  hoped  to  escape  the  teeth  and 
claws  of  the  wild  beast  by  gaining  the  branches  of  a  tree  !  Such  was 
my  perilous  position.  It  was  death  to  go  back  into  the  wilderness  ;  it 
was  destruction  to  go  forward,  as  it  then  seemed.  What  was  I  to  do  ? 
At  this  moment  of  intense  anxiety,  I  caught  sight  of  something  that 
instantly  set  my  blood  on  fire — that  thrilled  m}'^  very  soul,  that  put 
hope  in  my  heart  and  a  song  of  rejoicing  in  my  mouth  !  An  ecstasy 
only  to  be  felt  once  in  a  hfetime  ;  only  once,  when  the  uplifted  arm  of 
death  is  averted  by  a  friendly  hand.  Across  the  stream,  300  \'ards 
beyond,  I  saw  sparks  ascending  upward  beyond  the  tree  tops !  It  was 
a  voice  that  said  to  me:  Humanity  is  at  hand!  There  is  a  human 
being  in  this  vast  solitude  beside  vourself  I  He  mav  be  friend  or  foe — 
what  matters  that  ?  The  hand  that  kindled  that  fire  in  the  wilderness 
may  be  that  of  a  savage  Indian  or  a  still  more  savage  white  man. 
"What  doth  it  matter  ?  It  is  the  hand  of  humanity  I  I  will  go  and  seek 
it !  And  so  I  did,  riding  noiselessly  in  the  dark,  until  I  came  opix)site 
the  fire.  I  saw  two  men  dozing  before  it  and  smoking  their  pipes. 
From  the  articles  lying  around  I  concluded  that  it  was  a  permanent 
camp,  but  who  the  men  were,  whether  they  were  cut-throats  driven 
from  the  pale  of  border  society'  into  this  wilderness  to  escape  punish- 
ment for  their  murderous  deeds,  or,  whether  they  were  honest  men 
engaged  in  the  lawful  pursuits  of  business,  I  could  not  tell.  I  did  not, 
however,  stop  to  consider  that  question  in  my  present  condition ;  any 
fate  was  preferable  to  starving  in  the  wilderness,  or  being  devoured  by 
wild  beasts.  I  hailed  them  at  once.  I  cried  in  as  loud  a  voice  as  I 
could  command :  "  Hallo  there ! " 

If  I  had  fired  a  rifleshot  at  them  they  could  not  have  been  more 
suddenly  or  completely  aroused  than  by  that  unexpected  voice  from 
out  of  the  dark.  Of  course  they^could  not  see  me  as  I  stood  within 
the  shadow  of  the  night  on  the  other  side  of  the  stream ;  but  they  both 
seemed  to  reply  at  once :  "  "Who  are  you  ?"  "  "What  do  you  want  ?" 
I  had  resolved  to  tell  the  exact   truth  and  face  the  consequences, 


ECHOES    FKOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  451 

and  so  I  replied:  "I  am  a  United  States  official;  have  been  wander- 
ing for  two  days  and  nights,  lost  in  the  mountains  without  food  or 
water  until  I  struck  this  stream  an  hour  ago,  and  I  am  likewise  severely 
injured  from  a  fall  of  my  horse  this  afternoon.  Can  I  come  into  your 
camp  ?" 

"  Are  you  telling  the  truth  ? " 

"  Yes ;  I  am  speaking  the  truth." 

"  Are  you  alone  ?" 

"  I  am  entirely  alone." 

"  How  are  you  heeled  .^"  which  translated  into  pure .  Saxon  meant, 
^'How  are  you  armed  ?"  I  replied. 

"  I  am  entirely  without  arms  save  a  pair  of  derringer  pistols !  " 

They  still  seemed  to  have  some  doubts  in  their  minds,  so  they 
asked  : 

"  What  are  you  doing  in  this  part  of  the  country  anyway  ? " 

I  explained  as  briefly  as  I  could  how  I  came  to  be  lost  after 
parting  with  my  friends,  and  again  remarked  about  my  weak  and 
wounded  condition,  and  asked  if  I  could  enter  their  camp.  They  con- 
sulted together  in  a  low  tone  of  voice  for  a  few  moments  and  then 
said : 

"  If  you  have  told  us  the  truth  you  can  do  so ;  but  if  you  have 
lied  to  us,  you  had  better  not  come  !  " 

I  asked  if  I  could  ford  the  stream  at  that  point,  and  they  replied 
I  could,  and  so  I  plunged  into  the  water  that  was  not  more  than  three 
or  four  feet  deep,  and  was  soon  in  their  presence. 

Observing  that  what  I  had  spoken  was  the  truth,  they  bade  me 
get  down  from  my  horse,  assisted  me  to  a  seat  by  their  fire,  staked  my 
animal  a  little  way  off,  where  he  could  browse,  and  prepared  some 
food  for  me  from  the  remains  of  their  supper,  which  I  disposed  of  with 
as  great  dispatch  as  the  severe  pain  of  my  limb  would  allow.  I  felt, 
however,  that  it  was  necessary  for  me  to  get  to  a  settlement  as  soon  as 
possible,  where  I  could  lie  on  a  bed  and  receive  surgical  aid,  and  that 
it  was  equally  imperative  that  I  should  go  at  once  as,  perhaps,  should 
I  linger  till  daylight,  my  limb  would  be  so  swollen  that  I  could  not 
sit  astride  of  a  horse.  So  I  inquired  of  them  where  I  was  and  the  dis- 
tance to  the  nearest  settlement. 

They  informed  me  that  I  had  entered  the  untrodden  wilderness, 
and  that  Summit  City,  a  small  mining  village,  was  the  nearest  settle- 
ment and  distant  fifty  miles  from  that  point,  but  that  there  was  no 


453  ECHOES    FEOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

doctor  there  and  none  nearer  than  Virginia  City.  I  stated  the  neces- 
sity of  my  immediate  departure  in  search  of  surgical  aid,  and  told 
them  I  had  but  $20  with  me,  but  if  one  of  them  would  guide  me  to 
Virginia  City  and  would  be  willing  to  start  immediately,  I  would  give 
them  $30  more. 

They  went  off  a  little  way  and  entered  into  an  earnest  conver- 
sation, but  in  such  low  tones  that  I  could  not  distinguish  what  was 
said.  Presently  they  returned  and  taking  two  small  sticks,  one  shorter 
than  the  other,  proceeded  to  draw  lots,  as  was  the  custom  of  the 
country,  to  determine  who  should  go. 

It  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  larger  man  of  the  two  to  accompany  me, 
and  without  a  word  he  brought  my  horse  to  me,  put  the  saddle  on  him 
and  assisted  me  to  mount,  while  the  other  went  out  somewhere  in  the 
dark  and  brought  in  a  small  rough  animal  with  long  ears  and  a 
short  stumpy  tail,  likewise  saddled  and  bridled,  which  my  companion 
mounted  and  bade  me  follow  as  he  entered  the  water. 

After  leaving  the  bright  light  of  the  blazing  camp  fire,  the  dark- 
ness appeared  intensified  and  I  was  compelled  to  keep  close  behind 
the  little  animal  to  distinguish  my  way. 

I  repeatedly  spoke  to  my  companion,  but  with  the  exception  of  a  low 
grunt  now  and  then,  he  did  not  deign  a  reply.  I  did  not  like  his  stv^le, 
and  his  actions  once  or  twice  aroused  a  suspicion  in  my  mind  that  all 
was  not  right.  I  likewise  remembered  that  his  features  revealed  by 
the  glare  of  the  camp  fire  were  anything  but  prepossessing. 

Thinking  perhaps  it  was  his  manner  and  that  nothing  was  in- 
tended, and  knowing  full  well  that  I  was  entirely  in  his  power  in  my 
weak  and  wounded  condition,  I  proposed  to  make  the  best  of  it,  and, 
if  possible,  to  make  myself  agreeable.  So,  riding  close  beside  him,  I 
endeavored  to  enlist  him  in  conversation,  but  he  was  as  dumb  as  an 
oyster.  I  finall}',  as  a  last  resort,  asked  him  what  he  and  his  comrade 
were  doing  in  that  part  of  the  country,  so  remote  from  human  society ! 
I  will  not  be  sure,  but  I  think  his  reply  was  that  it  was  none  of  my 
business ! 

I  relapsed  into  silence,  determined  to  ask  no  more  questions  of 
such  a  gruff  companion.  I  could  not  account  for  such  a  strange  way, 
and,  as  a  result,  felt  quite  uneasy.  Suffering  great  pain  all  the  while, 
my  mind  was  in  a  frame  susceptible  of  peculiar  emotions.  In  spite  of 
my  determination    to   believe  otherwise,  the  thought   would  enter: 


ECilOilS    riloM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  453 

"  Perhaps  he  is  leading  jou  away  from,  instead  of  toward  the  nearest 
settlement !  Perhaps  he  thinks  j'-ou  have  a  large  sum  of  money  about 
you  and  proposes  to  lead  you  to  some  lone  spot  still  farther  within  the 
depths  of  these  unknown  mountains  and  murder  you,  to  be  devoured 
by  wild  beasts,  to  remove  every  trace  of  the  deed."  But  then  I  would 
say  to  myself :  ''  These  are  not  the  thoughts  of  a  brave  man  and  you 
are  but  adding  to  your  pain  and  anxiety  to  entertain  them  for  a 
moment !  " 

Thus  we  journeyed  on  in  silence  in  that  moonless  and  starless  night 
until  we  came  suddenly  upon  one  of  the  wildest  and  weirdest  spots  it 
was  ever  my  fortune  to  behold.  It  was  a  thick  grove  of  tall  cypress 
trees,  at  the  base  of  lofty  mountains,  through  which  the  wind  was 
soughing  mournfully  and  in  which  the  darkness  of  the  night  was 
deepened  tenfold  by  its  sombre  gloom.  If  a  murder  was  to  be  com- 
mitted this  was  the  time  and  place,  and  at  this  spot  that  man  dis- 
mounted from  his  animal.  Again  the  human  instinct  of  self-preserva- 
tion led  me  to  think  quickly,  and  in  an  instant  I  resolved  that  my  only 
hope,  if  he  meant  to  slay  me,  was  to  kill  him  ere  he  could  reach  me. 
So,  drawing,  both  my  derringers  and  softly  raising  the  hammers,  I  bent 
over  the  head  of  my  horse,  straining  my  eyes  to  discern  his  slightest 
movement,  fully  determined  to  shoot  him  if  he  but  turned  toward  me. 
I  have  often  thought  upon  what  a  slender  thread  hung  that  man's  life 
and  how  utterly  fooUsh  my  resolve.  However,  he  did  not  turn  upon 
me  or  toward  me,  but  compassionately  taking  his  jenny  by  the  bridle, 
began  the  toilsome  ascent  of  the  mountain  divide  which  I  had  crossed 
the  second  day  before  at  a  distant  point  beyond. 

If  I  should  live  a  thousand  years  I  do  not  believe  I  should  ever 
forget  that  midnight  ride  up  the  side  of  that  mountain  range  in  the 
Cimmerian  darkness  that  shrouded  horse  and  rider,  tree  and  shrub, 
rock  and  granite  boulder.  Nor  could  I  fail  to  remember  the  thoughts 
that  occupied  my  mind.  Memory  bells  were  ringing  in  my  ears.  Long 
forgotten  scenes  of  my  boyhood  days  passed  in  happy  review.  Beauti- 
ful stories  of  childhood  come  with  their  flowery  recollections ;  frag- 
ments of  songs  whose  strains  had  died  away  in  the  long  vista  of  years ; 
sweet  voices,  violets  in  the  memory,  of  loved  ones  long  since  silent  to 
the  listening  ear ;  voices  of  wife  and  baby  so  far  away  from  their 
wandering  loved  one ;  little  notes  of  babyland  sung  to  cooing  infant 
on  its  way  to  dreamland  ;  every  thing  gentle,  tender  and  sweet  in  the 


A'A  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTALSS- 

lowest  musical  tx^nes  of  the  soul,  soothing  the  wearj-hearted  on  the 
lonely  mountain  side  in  the  darkness  of  that.Jong  and  perilous  mid- 
night tramp  over  the  jagged  rock  and  slippery  shale  in  the  arms  of 
unceasing  pain.  All  else  was  lost ;  not  a  single  martial  strain  from  the 
great  march  and  battle  of  Life  came  to  crowd  out  the  tender,  pure  and 
gentle  thoughts  that  with  the  voice  of  inspiration  soothed  the  mind 
and  smoothed  the  way  over  that  long  and  perilous  road  up  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  great  divide. 

If  that  midnight  pathway  to  the  clouds  had  been  glorified  by  the 
songs  and  voices  of  troops  of  angels,  it  could  not  have  been  more  laden 
with  beautiful  shining  angel  thought.  And  who  shall  say  they  were  not 
angels,  all  invisible  to  the  human  eye,  yet  in  their  shining  robes  sent  to 
greet  the  wandererer  in  the  vestibule  of  danger  as  they  came  with 
their  fondest  love  to  meet  the  child  in  the  vestibule  of  life  ? 

True  it  is  I  felt  no  more  danger,  no  more  fear.  A  perfect  peace 
possessed  me  and  I  went  wearily  on  to  the  lofty  summit.  "When  that 
was  reached  my  companion  waited  until  I  also  gained  it.  Then  he 
began  a  transverse  journey  along  the  crest.  M\'  horse  moved  so 
wearily  and  withal  so  carefully  that  it  was  impossible  to  keep  up  with 
the  little  animal  ahead,  and  it  was  so  dark  that  I  could  scarcely  see 
my  own  animal's  head.  After  joume3'ing  this  way  for  some  time, 
directed  entirely  by  the  sound  of  the  footsteps  of  the  preceding  animal, 
I  came  suddenly  upon  my  companion  who,  for  the  first  time,  seemed 
to  have  a  voice.  He  spoke  very  clearly  and  well  to  the  point.  He 
said :  "  "We  can  go  no  farther  to-night-  There  is  a  great  gulch  or 
chasm  beyond  and  I  don't  know  where  we  are.  If  there  was  moon- 
light or  if  the  stars  were  shining  I  expect  I  could  tell ;  but  as  it  is  I 
won't  go  any  farther  till  daylight.  I  will  make  a  fire,  picket  the  ani- 
animals  and  we  can  lay  down  and  rest."  And  what  a  ghost  of  rest 
for  me !  I  had  to  be  helped  down  like  a  child  and  each  movement 
was  torture.  To  crown  our  difficulties,  suddenly  a  high  wind  arose  and 
the  cold  increased  ten-fold  and  cut  through  my  thin  flannel  coat  hke  a 
knife.  This  rendered  the  fire  of  but  little  avail,  as  we  were  compelled 
to  sit  on  the  side  from  which  the  wind  blew,  to  keep  the  smoke  from 
blinding  us.  It  served,  however,  to  keep  off  the  wolves  we  heard 
howling  at  some  distance.  My  companion  grew  more  communicative 
— at  close  quarters.  The  fire  seemed  to  thaw  out  his  close  nature  and 
I  soon  found  he  could  prove  an  agreeable  acquaintance  if  he  chose. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUKTAIIfS.  455 

Reticence  is  characteristic  of  the  mountaineer.  He  seldom  speaks 
when  in  action.  But  now  he  answered  a  question  which,  hours  before, 
I  had  asked  only  to  be  refused.  He  told  me  that  he  and  his  "  pard  " 
Avere  miners.  That  he  had  been  told  by  Indians  that  this  wild  country 
contained  streams  filled  wdth  gold  dust  just  like  Alder  Gulch,  and  that 
they  had  been  since  spring  opened,  prospecting  along  the  dry  beds  of 
streams,  but  with  very  limited  success.  Still  he  believed  they  would 
ere  long  "  strike  it  rich."  He  further  said  he  believed  they  were  the 
only  two  white  men  in  that  country.  "When  I  mentioned  the  outlaws 
supposed  to  be  there,  he  said  he  did  not  think  of  them  as  "  Avhite 
men ! "  He  also  told  me  that  he  and  his  comrades  were  "  forty-niners ; " 
went  to  California  with  the  first  rush  and,  with  varying  fortunes,  had 
pursued  the  ignis-fatuus  ever  since;  had  dug  gold  in  California, 
mined  in  Nevada,  prospected  in  Utah,  Idaho  and  Montana  and 
believed  that  now,  after  twenty  years  of  ceaseless  labor  in  search  of 
the  precious  metal,  their  fortune  was  soon  to  be  made  and  that  it  would 
prove  immense. 

And  such  is  the  weary  tramp  of  the  gold-seeker  !  From  State  to 
State,  from  Territory  to  Territory,  from  one  discovery  to  another  he 
flies,  in  storm  and  sunshine,  ip  poverty  and  rags,  in  hunger  and  want, 
braving  those  perils  that  would  make  a  god  of  man  on  the  battlefield ; 
possessed  of  that  determination  of  purpose  which,  if  displayed  in  field, 
camp,  or  cabinet,  might  create  kingdoms  or  change  the  boundaries  of 
empires — merely  to  gain  that  which  he  seldom  finds,  but  if  once  found 
forges  fetters  for  the  soul  and  mind,  barters  honor,  affection  and  the 
crown  of  eternity ! 

My  companion,  for  whom  I  began  to  feel  quite  a  regard,  then 
asked  me  man}'^  questions  concerning  myself,  and  when  I  told  him  that 
I  had  lived  and  practiced  law  in  the  city  of  Washington  for  some 
years,  suddenly  exclaimed,  "My  God!  ^j  j)ard  will  feel  pretty 
d n  bad,  when  he  hears  that." 

I  remarked  "  why  so  ?" 

"  Well,  you  see,"  he  replied,  "my  pard  went  to  California  in  '49 
from  Washington,  and  has  never  been  back  since  he  left,  and  he's  been 
looking  for  a  long  time  for  some  one  who  lived  there  so  as  to  give  him 
information  of  his  people.  Not  having  made  his  pile  he  has  not  writ- 
ten home  for  a  long  time,  and  I  suppose  they  they  think  him  dead. 
He  has  got  a  brother  in  Washington  who  is  a  preacher  !" 


45G  ECHOES    FROM    THE    nOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

I  inquired  the  name  of  his  "pard's"  brother. 

"Holmead,"'  he  said. 

"  O,  yes, "  said  I,  "  I  am  well  acquainted  with  him,  and  but  a  few 
summers  ago  spent  some  very  pleasant  days  in  his  company  in  the 
beautiful  "Wissahickon  Valley  of  Pennsylvania. " 

After  asking  many  questions  concerning  his  "pard's"  relations, 
and  obtaining  what  he  thought  was  sufficient  to  enlighten  him,  and 

after  again  remarking  that  it  was  a  d d  shame  that  his  "  pard " 

should  have  missed  "the  short  straw, "  he  dismissed  the  whole  matter 
by  saying  he  would  "  bundle  up  and  put  in  his  pocket  for  his  comrade  " 
"what  I  had  told  him  concerning  his  relatives. 

After  alternatel}^  freezing  and  burning  for  two  hours,  I  should 
think,  the  streaks  of  the  morning  began  to  gleam  over  the  mountain 
tops,  and  soon  the  light  gushed  upward,  sheaf -like,  with  its  ten  thou- 
sand rays,  and  shed  the  shining  day  on  rock  and  hill  and  towering  cliff 
and  silver}^  streams  that  rippled  over  their  granite  beds. 

As  soon  as  daylight  dawned  we  beheld  the  perilous  attitude  of  our 
camp.  Only  a  clump  of  bushes  five  feet  wide  separated  us  and  the 
edge  of  a  chasm  a  thousand  feet  deep.  Even  the  prospector,  hardened 
by  many  such  scenes  and  used  to  constant^  and  instant  peril,  was  moved 
by  our  unconscious  proximity  to  such  immediate  danger.  Again  assist- 
ing me  to  mount  we  proceeded  about  500  yards,  when  we  reached  the 
great  gulch  that  his  practiced  eye  had  discerned  in  the  darkness  of  the 
previous  night.  It  was  very  deep  and  its  sides  well  nigh  vertical. 
How  we  were  to  descend  I  knew  not.  Leaving  me  and  the  two 
animals  at  this  point,  he  went  in  search  of  an  easier  descent.  After  a 
little  while  he  returned  with  the  information  that  he  had  discovered 
what  he  believed  to  be  an  Indian  trail.  Moving  as  rapidly  as  possible 
to  that  point,  he  began  the  descent  first  by  leading  his  trusty  little 
animal  safely  to  the  bottom.  Returning,  he  proceeded  in  the  same 
manner  with  my^  horse,  and  had  passed  safely  down  two-thirds  of  the 
way  when  the  unfortunate  animal,  losing  its  foothold,  fell  and  rolled 
over  and  over  to  the  bottom  of  the  caiion.  I  did  not  for  a  moment 
believe  that  a  breath  of  life  could  possibly  remain  in  its  body  after 
such  a  terrible  shaking-up,  and  consequently  bemoaned  my  own  sad 
condition  bereft  of  the  animal  that  had  so  patiently  borne  me  thus  far. 

However,  on  reaching  the  bottom  of  the  gulch  and  giving  forth  a 
few  vigorous  kicks  he  suddenly  bounded  upon   his  feet  and  stood 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  457 

upright,  shaking  the  dust  and  debris  of  loosened  hair,  grass  and  dirt 
from  his  body.  He  was  scarified  from  head  to  heels,  but  I  rejoiced  to 
find  he  was  alive  and  no  bones  broken. 

After  mending,  and  readjusting  the  broken  saddle  upon  the 
animal's  back,  the  miner  returned  to  assist  me  in  descending  the  trail 
to  the  bottom  of  the  deep  gulch.  This  I  accomplished  by  slow  degrees 
with  my  hands  and  one  limb,  the  other  being  upheld  by  my  companion 
We  lost  no  time  in  pushing  our  way  along  the  canon,  which  he 
declared  led  directly  to  Summit  City.  After  traveling  for  some  time 
we  passed  a  dry  and  blackened  spot  of  earth  which  the  practiced  eye 
of  the  miner  declared  to  be  the  first  sign  of  civilization  he  had  yet 
beheld  since  leaving  his  camp.  He  declared  it  to  be  the  long  worked 
bed  of  a  charcoal  kiln  and  that  Summit  City  could  not  be  many  miles 
away.  And  so  it  proved,  for  the  evidences  became  plainer  at  each 
step,  and  it  was  not  very  long  ere  we  came  directly  upon  the  little 
mining  village  of  half  a  dozen  houses  dignified  with  the  title  of  Summit 
City. 

I  inquired  eagerly  for  a  resting  place  and  a  physician,  and  was  told 
neither  were  to  be  found  there.  My  condition  was  such  that  I  knew 
that,  although  possessed  of  a  frame  like  Hercules  and  a  will  of  iron,  it 
could  not  endure  forever,  and  unless  I  should  soon  obtain  relief,  I 
would  fall  by  the  wayside  or  a  permanent  injury  ensue.  I  therefore 
concluded  to  push  right  on  for  Virginia  City,  distant  sixty  miles. 

It  was  a  beautiful  Sabbath  day  and  the  bright  sun  warmed  my 
blood  and  seemed  to  renew  my  fast-departing  strength*.  My  spirits 
rose  with  the  ecstasy  of  hope  that  I  should  soon  obtain  rest  and  relief. 
I  therefore  said  to  the  miner.  "  It  is  imperative  that  I  should  reach 
Yirginia  City  to-day,  and  to  do  so  before  midnight  we  must  begin  our 
journey  immediately."  The  miner  said  :  "  The  road  is  now  a  straight 
one  from  here  on  and  does  not  leave  the  small  stream  that  runs  through 
this  gulch.  You  no  longer  need  my  aid,  and  so  if  you  will  now  give 
me  the  $20  you  promised,  I  will  not  go  any  farther  with  you,  but  buy 
a  few  things  here  and  return  to  my  jpardP 

And  so  we  parted.  I  never  saw  him  afterward  nor  heard  of  his 
fortune  or  fate.  He  may  have  "  struck  it  rich  "  and  gathered  the 
immense  wealth  that  glowed  like  a  prophetic  vision  in  his  mind's  eye, 
but  I  doubt  it.  Eather  do  I  fear  he  still  forms  one  of  that  band  of 
restless  and  adventurous  men  who  flit  like  gaunt  specters  from  one 


458  ECHOES  FEOir  THE   BOCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

gold  field  to  another,  ever  on  the  search,  still  and  silent  and  ghost-like, 
that,  like  apparitions,  spring  up  as  if  out  of  the  dr\^  leads  of  gold 
gulches  with  the  implements  of  their  trade,  those  wands  of  power,  the 
open  sesame  of  the  unlocked  earth  that  holds  withm  its  flinty  jaws 
the  peerless  wealth  of  the  goldseeker's  highest  hope  and  joy.  Or  it 
may  be  that,  "  after  life's  fitful  fever,"  he  sleeps  in  a  quiet  grave  by 
the  side  of  a  singing  stream,  like  that  where  I  first  beheld  him  ;  deliv- 
ered at  last  from  the  bondage  of  a  gold  slave,  released  by  the  jailer  of 
his  soul  from  the  demons  that  scourged  him  to  his  rest  like  a  quarry 
slave  into  the  freedom  of  the  soul  and  the  kingly  reign  of  a  kind  and 
generous  nature. 

I  traveled  all  that  day  at  a  slow  pace,  and  night  again  fell  on 
mountain  and  valley  ere  I  reached  the  vicinity  of  Virginia  City.  In 
fact,  the  moments  approached  midnight  when  I  rode  down  Main 
Street  of  the  capital  city,  toward  the  governor's  residence,  where  I 
was  stopping  by  invitation.  M}'  tired  beast  which,  however,  had  been 
well  fed  since  its  morning  meal  at  Summit  City,  was  soon  stalled,  and 
as  comfortably  fixed  as  its  sore  back  and  sides  and  limbs  would  per- 
mit. I  lay  down  at  once  upon  my  bed,  but,  from  the  long  strain  of 
the  day's  ride  upon  my  aching  limb,  in  the  unchangeable  position  on 
the  saddle,  it  seemed  to  grow  worse  and  worse  as  the  night  advanced, 
until  the  pain  became  well-nigh  unbearable.  I  found  that  the  only 
physician  remaining  in  the  town  was  a  homoeopathist  and  not  skilled 
in  surgery.  The  nearest  town  was  Helena,  the  present  capital  of  the 
Territory,  120  miles  distant,  and  I  determined  to  proceed  on  the  morn- 
ing coach  to  that  point.  Of  course,  it  was  easier  traveling  by  coach 
than  horseback,  and  although  rocked  considerably  by  its  jolts  over  the 
rough  portions  of  the  road,  nevertheless,  sustained  by  the  hope  of 
early  relief,  I  reached  the  town  in  much  better  spirits  and  condition 
than  I  had  hoped  for.  1  had  been  informed  that  there  were  several 
doctors  there,  two  of  whom  had  been  army  surgeons,  and  I  felt  that  in 
a  short  time  under  their  care  and  the  attention  of  my  friends,  I  would 
be  fully  recovered. 

To  my  dismay  I  found  on  arrival  that  not  one  was  there.  An 
Indian  raid  had  occurred  but  a  short  time  previous  and  a  large  amount 
of  stock  had  been  driven  off  by  the  savages.  The  citizens  had  organ- 
ized a  force  to  pursue  them  and  recover  the  animals,  and  as  a  severe 
brush  was  anticipated,  the  physicians  at  home  had  volunteered  to 


ECHOES   FROM  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.  459' 

accompany  them,  and  thus  that  town  was  also  for  the  time  being 
without  a  doctor.  It  was  not  known  when  the  party  would  return, 
and  as  I  feared  the  worst,  I  concluded  after  resting  a  day,  to  take  the 
coach  for  the  south  and  return  to  Salt  Lake  City. 

I  will  not  undertake  to  relate  the  sufferings  and  extremity  of  that 
long  ride  in  a  mountain  hack  to  the  Yalley  of  Rest.  It  was  a  con- 
tinuous journey  of  600  miles  over  an  almost  continuous  mountain  road 
without  rest  or  relief,  save  at  the  stations  where  we  stopped  for  a  few 
minutes  to  change  the  horses,  and  at  the  "home  stations,"  fifty 
miles  apart,  for  food.  As  I  approached  the  beautiful  city  of  Salt  Lake 
which  the  hand  of  Mormon  industry  had  made  to  blossom  as  the  rose, 
its  valleys  never  looked  greener,  its  streams  of  living  water  more 
sparkling,  its  gardens  more  inviting,  the  odor  of  its  flowers  sweeter,  its 
mountain  peaks  more  loft}'-,  its  blue  skies  more  tender,  its  soft  air  more 
refreshing,  and  its  wealth  of  health-giving  atmosphere  more  generous, 
than  on  that  summer  morn  that  restored  me  to  my  waiting  loved  ones. 
For  five  weeks  I  was  under  the  doctor's  care,  but,  thanks  to  a  good 
constitution  and  kind  attention,  I  was  fully  restored  to  my  accustomed, 
health  and  vigor. 

I  had  forgotten  to  mention  that  on  arrival  at  the  Governor's 
quarters  in  Virginia  City  and  upon  meeting  that  official,  he  remarked : 
"  Well,  where  have  you  been  for  the  past  three  days  ?  We  concluded 
you  were  lost  in  the  mountains,  and  a  party  of  fifty  men  are  organized 
to  start  at  daylight  to-morrow  morning  to  search  for  you !  " 

"When  it  was  known  in  Yirginia  City  that  I  was  lost  in  the 
mountains,  a  telegraphic  dispatch  was  sent  to  Salt  Lake  City.  My 
wife  and  infant  child  "were  there  awaiting  my  return.  Mr.  Saul,  the 
editor  of  the  Salt  Lake  paper  to  which  it  was  sent,  suppressed  its 
publication,  being  aware  of  the  fact  that  it  would  immediately  be 
made  known  to  my  wife,  and  fearing  injurious  effects.  When,  however, 
my  escape  from  the  mountain  wilderness  was  likewise  made  public  by 
telegram,  the  kind  and  considerate  editor  then  published  both 
telegrams,  thus  revealing  to  my  family  and  friends  my  adventure  and 
providential  escape.  This  considerate  act  cemented  our  friendship, 
and  it  afterward  became  possible  for  me  to  perform  a  great  favor  for 
him  in  the  most  critical  period  in  his  newspaper  fortune.  If  he  be  still 
in  the  walks  of  life  and  these  lines  should  meet  his  eye  and  recall  the 
recollection  of  those  days,  let  it  be  a  further  token  of  gratitude  for  his. 
considerate  action. 


460  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCET    MOUNTAINS. 

I  have  often  thought  how  different  the  life  of  a  pioneer  from  that 
of  one  reared  within  the  paths  of  civUization.  If  a  man  fall  from  a 
ladder  on  a  building  in  process  of  construction  in  a  great  city  and 
sprain  his  ankle  or  dislocate  his  arm,  or  meet  with  an  accident  of  some 
severity,  how  tenderly  he  is  borne,  if  but  a  few  blocks,  to  his  home, 
or  to  the  kind  treatment  of  a  hospital  Sympathy  is  the  expression  of 
the  multitude  and  the  outpouring  of  the  better  portion  of  our 
humanity.  Without  it  we  are  no  hetter  than  savages,  and  that  is  what 
distinguishes  civilization  from  barbarism.  The  nearer  we  approach 
civilization  the  closer  we  get  to  man's  sympathies  and  tenderness — all 
that  is  beautiful  and  best.  But  there  must  be  a  starting  point  some- 
where. Civilization  is  the  offshoot  of  labor,  and  the  pioneer  is  the 
right  arm  that  smooths  the  way  and  plants  the  blossoms  that  ripen 
into  the  full  measure  of  wealth  and  refinement.  He  plows  and  plants 
and  delves  amid  earth's  treasures  and  unlocks  its  mighty  secrets  in  the 
wild,  untamed  border  life,  but  little  removed  from  that  of  the  semi- 
civilized.  Yet  the  seeds  he  plants  ripen  into  the  harvest  of  Society's 
development  all  along  the  great  highways  of  civilization.  They  are 
sown  in  the  wilderness,  but  their  fruit  falls  into  the  lap  of  civilization. 
The  nation  grows  stronger  for  the  sacrifices  and  endurance  of  the  race 
that  carves  the  early  path  of  empire.  Its  pillars  rest  securely  upon 
the  foundations  built  broad  and  deep  by  its  courage,  resolution,  endur- 
ance and  patriotism. 


k 


CHAPTER  XXXL 

WONDERFUL  ESCAPE  FROM  MASSACRE  BY  INDIANS  IN  ARIZONA  —  COLONEL 
STONE -DELEGATE  McCORMICK  OF  ARIZONA  —  MEETING  IN  WASHINGTON 
CITY  — ON  MY  WAY  TO  JOIN  THEM  — ARRIVAL  AT  SACRAMENTO— TELE- 
GRAPHIC ORDER  FROM  WASHINGTON  DIRECTING  ME  TO  RETURN  AND 
PROCEED  TO  MONTANA  ON  IMPORTANT  GOVER VMBNT  BUSINESS  -  COLONEL 
STONE  AND  WHOLE  PARTY   MURDERED  BY  INDIANS. 

Early  in  the  year  1869  I  left  Salt  Lake  City  for  the  Federal  capital 
on  important  business  connected  with  the  overland  mail  service.  A 
congressional  committee  of  the  House  of  Eepresentatives  of  the  Fortieth 
Congress  was  engaged  in  the  investigation  of  the  overland  mail  system. 
At  the  termination  of  the  annual  contract  of  the  previous  3'earj  made 
by  the  postoffice  department  with  the  express  company  of  Wells,  Fargo, 
&  Co.,  there  had  occurred  a  temporary  suspension  of  the  overland 
mail  service,  which  involved  an  increased  expenditure  on  the  part  of 
the  Government  of  several  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  the  reletting  of 
the  contract,  and  this  act  of  the  department,  as  well  as  the  general 
service  of  the  Overland  Mail  Company,  was  the  subject  of  congressional 
investigation.  This  temporary  suspension  of  the  service  and  increase 
of  pay  in  the  reletting  was  occasioned  by  the  following  circumstances. 
Upon  opening  the  bids  for  said  service  at  the  postoffice  department  at 
Washington  it  was  found  that  the  lowest  bidder  was  T.  C.  Spaids,  of 
Chicago,  who  offered  to  perform  the  service  for  $650,000  in  accordance 
with  the  requirements  of  the  postoffice  department.  The  next  lowest 
bidder  was  the  firm  of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.,  who  agreed  to  per- 
form the  same  service  for  $850,000,  a  difference  in  favor  of  Spaids' 
offer  of  $200,000.  Mr.  Spaids  was  immediately  notified  of  the  accept 
ance  of  his  bid  by  the  postmaster-general,  and  the  required  bond  was 
filed  by  Spaids  and  approved  by  the  department.  Shortly  thereafter 
Mr.  Spaids  made  a  trip  over  the  road,  and  doubtless  arrived  at  the  con- 
clusion that  his  bid  for  the  service  was  inadequate  and  secretly  deter- 
mined to  abandon  the  contract,  taking  advantage  of  a  flaw  in  the  same, 
to  protect  his  bondsmen.  At  any  rate  he  made  no  provision  for  stock- 
ing and  equipping  the  road  preparatory  to  entering  upon  the  service. 

461 


462  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUITTAIXS. 

The  wild  nutritious  hay  which  could  be  gathered  at  certain  places  at  a 
certain  period  of  the  year,  with  which  to  feed  the  stock  had  been 
neglected  and  was  in  the  sole  possession  of  the  agents  of  Wells.  Fargo 
&  Co.  Not  a  station  had  been  erected,  a  ferry  established,  or  a 
horse  or  coach  placed  upon  the  road,  nor  an  agent  or  driver  employed 
upon  the  line.  Consequently,  on  the  day  that  the  contract  with  WeUs, 
Fargo  &  Co.  expired,  the  mail  service  ceased  absolutely".  Not  a 
letter,  newspaper  or  package  was  transported,  but  the  dnited  States 
mail  sacks  arriving  daily  at  the  end  of  both  lines  of  railroad  in  course 
of  construction,  were  thrown  aside  on  arrival  and  soon  grew  to  huge 
pQes.  This  of  course  occasioned  great  annoyance  and  inconvenience  to 
the  Grovemment  as  well  as  the  merchants  and  business  men  of  the 
Pacific  slope  and  the  Territories  who  were  so  suddenly  bereft  of  mail 
communication,  and  protests  and  complaints  by  telegraph  and  letters 
from  all  parts  of  that  section  flooded  the  office  of  the  postmaster- 
general  In  this  dilemma  the  department  did  all  that  it  could  to 
remedy  the  evil.  I  was  telegraphed  to  seek  an  interview  with  Brigham 
Young  and  endeavor  to  prevail  upon  him  to  undertake  the  business. 
He,  with  the  aid  of  the  Mormon  people,  was  the  only  party  besides  the 
express  company  who  could  safely  be  entrusted  with  the  contract. 
On  presenting  the  matter,  he  agreed  to  contract  to  carry  the  mails  for 
a  ver}-^  fair  consideration  from  the  end  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  to 
Salt  Lake  City,  but  positively  declined  to  contract  to  carry  them 
beyond  that  point.  As  there  was  no  other  party  able  under  a  month 
or  perhaps  two  months,  who  could  arrange  for  the  transportation  of 
the  same,  from  Salt  Lake  City  to  the  end  of  the  Central  Pacific  Eail- 
road,  I  telegraphed  the  postmaster-general  the  situation,  and  no  other 
recourse  remained  than  to  make  a  contract  with  "Wells,  Fargo  <fe  Co. 
to  perform  the  service.  Their  road  was  in  excellent  order,  their 
stage-coaches  running  daily  with  passengers  and  express  matter  and 
their  whole  line  stocked  and  equipped  for  the  service,  and  their  barns 
and  storehouses  filled  with  hay  and  feed  for  their  stock  for  the  long 
winter  months  ahead.  Under  these  circumstances  the  department  at 
Washington  was  compelled  to  accept  their  terms  or  let  the  service 
perish  and  arouse  the  indignation  and  anger  of  the  whole  Western 
slope  of  the  country.  Such  a  thing  would  cast  odium  upon  the  whole 
administration  and  was  not  to  be  thought  of  for  a  moment.  Wells. 
Fargo  <fe  Co.   were  the  masters  of  the  situation  and  dictated  the 


i 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  463 

terms.  Their  former  bid  as  stated  was  $850,000.  They  now  demanded 
$1,350,000  for  the  performance  of  the  same  service ;  an  addition  of  half 
a  million  dollars.  This  clause,  however,  was  inserted :  "  On  the  com- 
pletion of  every  additional  twenty-five  miles  of  railroad  by  each  of  the 
railroad  companies,  the  amount  was  to  be  reduced  pro  rata,  and  I  was 
instructed  to  notify  the  department  both  by  mail  and  telegraph  on  the 
completion  of  each  twenty-five  miles. 

Such  were  the  conditions  of  the  overland  mail  contract  entered 
into  after  the  failure  of  Spaids  to  execute  his  contract.  The  mail  serv- 
ice was  immediately  resumed.  Tlie  mountains  of  mailsacks  at  each 
end  of  the  railroad  began  to  move.  Coach  after  coach  dashed  along 
the  road,  filled  inside,  outside,  on  the  top,  in  the  boots  and  tied  to  the 
running  gear  underneath,  until  finally  the  last  were  removed  and  the 
service  resumed  its  former  proportions. 

Those  who  were  unaware  of  the  diflSculties  of  the  situation  and 
who  saw  only  the  fact  that  the  department  had  agreed  to  pay  the 
same  company  half  a  million  more  than  their  former  bid  for  the  per- 
formance of  the  identical  service,  believed  that  fraud  existed  some- 
where and  induced  Congress  to  order  an  investigation,  which  resulted 
in  a  complete  vindication  of  the  postmaster-general  and  his  associates 
from  any  aspersion  sought  to  be  cast  upon  him  and  them.  If  ever  an 
honest  man  filled  the  chair  of  the  postmaster-general,  that  man  was 
Alexander  W.  Randall,  of  Wisconsin,  than  whom  a  more  devoted 
friend  of  true  economy  or  a  more  watchful  and  careful  oflficer  of  the 
Government  never  lived  or  held  office. 

The  second  assistant  postmaster-general,  George  William  McLel- 
lan,  of  Massachusetts,  who  had  immediate  charge  of  the  mail  service 
and  who  had  long  held  that  position  with  honor  to  himself  and  credit 
to  the  country,  was  a  man  of  unimpeachable  character,  and  the  best 
evidence  of  his  probity  was  the  fact,  patent  to  all,  that  when  removed 
from  his  position  by  the  arbitrary  will  of  the  President  in  the  early 
days  of  the  new  administration,  although  a  life-long  and  consistent 
member  of  the  republican  party,  he  did  not  possess  $100  above  his 
current  wants,  and  owned  not  a  shelter  to  cover  his  "  head.  And  yet, 
when  we  reflect  that  opportunities  were  at  his  command  in  the  same 
Star  route  service  that  afterward  gave  rise,  in  a  subsequent  adminis- 
tration, to  so  much  scandal  and  such  vast  expenditure  on  the  part  of  the 


464  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCNTAIKS. 

Government  to  establish  the  guilt  of  those  charged  with  having  cor- 
rupted the  same  and  profited  to  the  extent  of  ^Ulions  of  dollars — how 
well  we  may  do  to  honor  the  man  and  revere  the  memory  of  one  who, 
whUe  living,  remained  true  to  his  trusts  and  who  died  without  a  dollar 
of  legacy  to  kith  or  kin,  when  great  fortune  might  have  been  at  his 
command  had  he  chosen  to  prostitute  Lis  high  office. 

It  was  while  in  Washington,  during  the  closing  weeks  of  the 
Fortieth  Congress,  while  this  investigation  was  in  progress  that  I  met 
two  gentlemen  in  official  station  for  whom  I  formed  a  verj^  high  regard 
and  with  one  of  whom  I  was  afterward  to  be  in  a  manner  associated 
in  what  proved  to  me  a  "circumstantial  escape"  if  I  may  use  the  term 
and  to  him  a  dark  and  bloody  end.  The  first  of  these  gentlemen  was 
the  Hon.  Richard  C.  McCormick,  at  that  time  and  subsequently  a 
delegate  in  Congress  from  the  Territory  of  Arizona.  A  most  aflfable 
official  and  educated  gentleman,  and  a  firm  friend  when  once  his  con- 
fidence had  been  secured.  Always  a  consistant  republican  in  jxjlitics, 
he  was  never  a  bitter  partisan,  and  when  subsequently  occupying  a 
lofty  position  in  the  councils  of  his  party,  he  was  never  known  as  an 
extremist.  Early  during  the  first  administration  of  Abraham  Lincoln 
he  came  to  TTashington  as  the  correspondent  of  one  of  the  great 
Xorthem  papers,  and  was  appointed  chief  clerk  of  the  census  bureau. 
Shortly  afterward  he  was  appointed  secretary  of  the  Territory  of 
Arizona,  and  a  vacancy  subsequently  occurring  in  the  office  of  gov- 
ernor he  was  elevated  to  that  position  and  so  won  the  confidence  and 
regard  of  the  people  of  that  remote  Territory  that  while  differing  with 
him  politically  they  nevertheless  elected  him  as  their  delegate  in  Con- 
gress, to  represent  their  interests  at  the  Federal  capital  He  has  since 
been  assistant  secretary  of  the  treasury,  commissioner  of  the  United 
States  at  the  Paris  Expositit>n  in  1878,  and  secretary  of  the  national 
committee  of  the  republican  party.  I  do  not  know  where  he  resides  at 
present,  or  whether  he  is  in  this  country.  Having  married  for  his 
second  wife  the  daughter  of  a  most  distinguished  democratic  senator, 
I  presume  she  has  influenced  him  to  cut  adrift  from  politics  and  he 
has  quietly  settled  down  to  the  pleasures  of  domestic  life.  However, 
I  have  not  seen  him  for  many  years,  but  I  presume  he  is  the  same  kind, 
affable  gentleman,  and  the  same  untiring  worker  in  whatever  field  he 
may  now  be  laboring,  as  when  first  I  met  him  as  the  ever  vigilant  and 
energetic  delegate  from  Arizona,  who.  unsolicited,   performed   for   me 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  465 

an  essential  favor  which  I  have  never  forgotten.  Nor  have  I  forgotten 
the  story  that  fell  from  his  lips  of  that  long,  sad  journey  of  many 
hundreds  of  miles  through  a  desolate  region  and  a  wild  Indian  country 
where  the  lurking  savage  was  ever  ready  to  spring  upon  the  defense- 
less traveler,  bearing  to  the  home  of  her  early  girlhood  the  body  of  his 
young  and  beautiful  wife,  who  had  died  so  far  away  in  the  "Western 
wilds,  maintaining  the  sacred  promise  he  had  made  her  ere  her  gentle 
spirit  fled,  that  her  body  should  lie  in  the  green  valley  of  her  Eastern 
home.  If  there  is  one  thing  in  man's  life  more  beautiful  than  another, 
to  me  it  seems  to  be  the  devotion  he  entertains  for  those  Avhom  God 
and  nature  have  allied  unto  him.     To  say  with  Avon's  bard : 

"  Now,  frora  head  to  foot, 

I  am  marble  constant  nor  the  fleetinsr  moon 
No  planet  of  mine.  • 

'*  I  am  constant  as  the  northern  star, 
Of  whose  true  fix'd  and  resting  quality 
There  is  no  fellow  in  the  firmament," 

As  remarked,  the  interests  of.  Arizona  were  his  own,  and  he  often 
talked  with  me  about  the  mail  facilities  of  his  Territory  and  urged 
upon  me  the  importance  of  an  extended  tour  through  Arizona,  with  a 
view  of  making  such  an  official  report  as  would  enable  him  to  arrest 
the  attention  of  the  department  and  obtain  the  assistance  of  Congress 
in  extending  the  service  into  the  more  distant  portions  of  his  Territory. 

Upon  one  occasion,  while  seated  in  his  room,  talking  over  these 
matters,  there  entered  a  gentleman  whom  the  delegate  greeted  warmly 
and  introduced  to  me  as  the  United  States  collector  of  customs  of 
Arizona  Territory.  This  gentleman  was  Col.  John  F.  Stone,  a  man 
of  most  genial  manners  and  the  possessor  of  one  of  the  finest  physiques 
I  ever  beheld.  He  was  fully  six  and  a  half  feet  in  height,  as  straight 
as  an  Indian,  with  a  touch  of  portliness  that  added  grace  to  his  magnifi- 
cent form.  Dressed  in  a  very  becoming  garb,  with  a  tall  dress  hat 
in  his  hand,  as  if,  proud  of  his  great  height,  he  would  rather  add  than 
detract  from  it,  there  was  withal  a  touch  of  barbaric  splendor  about  the 
giant,  occasioned  by  the  long,  heavy,  glittering,  California  gold  chain 
he  wore  about  his  neck,  falling  down  to  the  low  cut  vest  pocket  wherein 
resposed  a  magnificent  gold  watch.  Have  you  never  noticed  that  the 
further  a  man  removes  from  civilization,  the  greater  the  distance  he 
penetrates  the  wilderness,  the  more  he  approaches  the  savage  idea  of 
splendor  of  dress  and  accoutrements  ?   Men  who,  in  the  crowded  marts 

80 


466  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS, 

of  the  East,  would  never  think  of  clothing  themselves  in  aught  but  the 
simplest  garb,  when  removed  to  the  wilder  regions  of  mountain  and 
plains,  array  themselves  in  gaudy  dress,  wear  the  brightest  colors  and 
adorn  their  persons  with  the  richest  jewelry.  Such,  indeed,  is  the 
fact;  for  here  was  a  man  of  most  courtly  manners,  whose  conversation 
was  entertaining,  language  chaste,  and  bearing  that  of  a  poUshed  gen- 
tleman, adorned  with  a  showy  gold  watch  and  chain,  for  which  he  had 
paid  in  San  Francisco  §1,300  in  coin  of  the  same  metal.  Old  Gold- 
smith teUs  us,  however,  that  dress  has  a  novel  effect  upon  the  conduct 
of  mankind.  That  according  to  his  dress  are  man's  ideas  of  address; 
that  processions,  cavalcades  and  gay  attire  mechanicall}'^  influence  the 
mind  toward  veneration,  and  that  an  emperor  in  his  night  cap  would  not 
meet  with  half  the  respect  of  an  emperor  in  his  crown. 

Colonel  Stone  had  just  arrived  in  "Washington  from  Arizona.  He 
had  journeyed  the  long  distance,  to  be  present  at  the  inauguration  of 
General  Grant  as  Pesident,  and,  I  presume,  to  make  himself  solid  with 
the  new  administration.  He  and  the  delegate  were  on  terms  of  the 
closest  intimacy,  and  being  an  oflBcial  of  great  merit  in  the  execution 
of  trusts  involving  great  courage  and  honesty,  and  withal  much  peril 
and  privation,  the  confidence  and  friendship  of  the  delegate  were  well 
bestowed. 

After  spending  a  pleasant  hour  with  Governor  McCormick,  we 
returned  to  the  hotel  where  we  were  both  stopping,  and  I  well  remem- 
ber the  sensation  produced  when  he  entered  the  crowded  lobby  ami 
walked  leisurly  toward  the  Clerk's  desk.  I  am  not  a  small  man  by 
any  means,  and  I  tip  the  beam  at  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty 
pounds,  and  yet  I  felt  like  a  pigmy  beside  this  giant.  Everyone  gazed 
upon  him  with  mingled  astonishment  and  admiration.  We  were  Lilli- 
putians beside  this  Gulliver  from  the  mountains.  He  appeared  to 
enjoy  this  admiration  in  a  quiet  way.  There  was  nothing  akin  to 
bravado,  nothing  of  the  dashing  st\le  that  usually  characterizes  the 
walks  and  ways  of  the  wild  western  man,  with  his  gaudy  vest  and 
broad  sombrero,  for  one  of  his  distinguishing  traits  was  modesty,  and 
when  I  came  to  know  him  well  I  found  that  this  giant  of  Herculean 
strength,  long  accustomed  to  Indian  warfare,  bronzed  by  the  storms 
of  mountain  and  plain,  inured  to  danger  of  every  kind,  and  the  hero  of 
many  conflicts,  possessed  a  heart  full  of  sympathy,  warmth  and  gen- 
erosity, and  as  tender  as  a  woman  when  appealed  to  by  some  gentle 
impulse. 


ECHOEfcj-    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  467 

Our  intimacy  thus  began,  continued  to  grow  apace  during  the  many 
weeks  we  were  associated.  Finally,  after  the  inauguration  of  General 
Grant,  and  the  official  matters  that  called  me  to  Washington  being 
adjusted,  I  prepared  to  leave  for  my  distant  post  in  the  Territories. 
Before  departing,  however,  it  was  arranged  between  us  that  I  should 
join  him  at  Tucson,  Arizona,  in  the  early  part  of  July,  and  proceed  thence 
on  a  tour  of  observation  through  certain  portions  of  the  Territory  in 
wiiich  the  people  were  especially  interested  with  regard  to  the  establish- 
ment of  post  roads  and  postoffices.  This  expedition  was  to  be  arranged 
for  other  purposes  than  the  one  just  indicated  ;  but  I  was  to  become  one 
of  a  dozen  men  who  would  travel  thus  for  mutual  protection  against 
the  savages,  who,  at  this  time,  were  viciously  inclined,  and  for  the 
pleasure  of  a  company  of  brave,  genial  companions  who  would  do  much 
to  soften  the  asperities  of  a  long,  tedious  journey  over  rough  mountain 
roads  and  sterile  wastes  to  points  far  removed  from  civilizing  influ- 
ences. 

Accordingly  after  my  return  to  Salt  Lake  City,  I  made  the 
necessary  preparations,  and  after  witnessing  the  completion  of  the  great 
transcontinental  line  of  railroad,  I  started  upon  the  long  journey  to 
Tucson  by  w^ay  of  Sacramento  and  San  Francisco.  My  purpose  was  to 
travel  southward  from  San  Francisco  through  San.  Luis  Obispo,  where 
I  had  friends  whom  I  had  not  seen  since  my  boyhood,  and  thence  by 
the  Southern  Stage  line  to  Prescott  and  on  to  Tucson,  where  I  should 
meet  my  genial  friend. 

I  was  detained  at  Corinne  and  Promontory  point  a  day  or  two  on 
official  business,  and  while  at  these  points,  the  weather  being  quite 
warm,  I  unfortunately  or  fortunately  as  the  reader  may  determine, 
drank  a  considerable  quantity  of  the  Avater  strongly  impregnated  witfi 
alkaline  properties.  This  acted  seriously  upon  my  system  having 
failed  to  dilute  it  with  a  proper  quantity  of  "  Yalley  Tan,"  which,  it  is 
claimed,  would  have  neutralized  the  effect  of  the  alkali,  and  conse- 
quently when  I  reached  Elko,  I  was  not  in  a  very  pleasant  condition. 
However,  much  against  the  protest  of  some  friends,  I  proceeded  on 
my  journey  in  the  hope  that  I  would  grow  better  as  I  w^ent  along. 
This  hope  was  vain.  On  arriving  at  AVinnemucca,  Nevada,  I  was  so  ill 
that  I  was  for  forced  to  abandon  the  train  and  endeavor  to  obtain  the 
services  of  a  physician.  T  shall  never  forget  my  experience  at  this 
quaint  railroad  town.     I  registered  at  the  only  hotel  in  the  place,  which 


468 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    EOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 


was  still  in  an  nnfamished  condition,  was  shown  to  a  room  next  the 
roof  on  the  second  floor  and  sent  for  the  doctor,  ^ho  administered  a  palli- 
ative of  some  sort  which  had  the  effect  of  temporarily  quieting  the  intense 
pain  which  nearly  consumed  me.  That  night  as  I  lay  on  the  bed  I  gazed 
through  the  roof  at  the  bright  stars  overhead,  silent  as  if  they  watched 
the  sleeping  earth ;  those  silver  gems  fixed  in  the  great  blue  vault : 
"  the  words  of  God,  the  scripture  of  the  skies.''  Presently  I  feU  asleep, 
and  when  I  awakened,  the  early  morning  sun  was  pouring  over  the 
hiUs  a  flood  of  light.  I  arose  and  came  down  stairs.  All  things 
seemed  beautiful  in  the  freshness  of  the  early  mom  among  the  mount- 
ains. I  was  weat  from  pain 
and  want  of  food ;  I  had  eat- 
en nothing  for  two  days,  and 
the  odor  of  the  food  being 
prepared  for  breakfast  was 
grateful  to  the  senses.  "Wand- 
ering about  the  premises  it 
drew  me  toward  the  kitchen. 
Ah,  unlucky  moment!  Why 
did  my  steps  lead  me  thither? 
Why  could  I  not  understand 
that  "where  ignorance  is 
bliss  'tis  folly  to  be  wise"? 
I  beheld  a  sight  which  robbed 
me  of  my  breakfast.  There 
was  the  omnipresent  China- 
man, the  cook  of  the  mount- 
ain city  as  well  as  the  desert 
camp.  He  was  engaged  in 
creating  saleratus  biscuit. 
fle  was  mixing  the  dough 
and  from  his  yellow  month  and  Mongolian  gums  was  squirting  water 
into  a  basin  of  flour,  grease  and  soda.  I  was  sick  at  the  stomach  and 
yet  a  spell  possesed  me ;  I  could  not  move  away.  I  watched  his  every 
motion  with  an  intense  earnestness  akin  to  desperation.  I  saw  him 
finish  the  job  of  mixing  the  dough  and  then  cut  it  into  cakes  for  the 
frying-pan ;  and  then,  ye  gods !  I  saw  him  take  the  skiQet  from  off 
the  stove,  hold  it  aloft  and  spit  again  within  it,  not  water  this  time, 


CHINESE  COOK, 


k 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUJfTAINS.  469 

but  his  own  Asiatic  saliva  sweetened  by  the  moldering  gums  and 
decayed  teeth  born  of  opium  joints,  for  he  was  an  ancient  heathen, 
and  then  I  left  with  a  curse  on  my  lips  for  the  whole  race  of  sour- 
smelling  filthy  Chinese  cooks. 

My  breakfast,  alas,  was  gone !  I  had  seen  the  "  heathen  Chinee  " 
in  every  phase  of  life.  On  the  great  highway,  building  the  iron  road ; 
among  his  dirty  linen,  scouring  the  monthly  accumulations  of  filth  and 
grease ;  down  in  the  dry  beds  of  deserted  placers ;  in  the  opium  dens 
where  he  lay  like  a  corpse,  beneath  the  influence  of  Hell's  white 
flowers ;  and  now  finally  I  beheld  him  in  the  role  of  cook  for 
Winnemucca's  Palace  Hotel  and  "  I  wanted  none  of  it  in  mine."  I 
took  a  drink  of  water  and  went  to  settle  my  bill,  so  as  to  be  ready  for 
the  train  when  it  should  come  plunging  along  the  unit  line  of  east 
and  west. 

I  asked  the  proprietor  the  amount  of  my  indebtedness.  He  fig- 
ured a  moment,  ''  dinner,  supper,  lodgings  and  breakfast,"  and  replied, 
"  Ten  dollars  in  gold  ! "  All  that  I  had  received  and  enjoyed  in  his 
caravansary  was  the  sleep  beneatli  the  shining  stars. 

I  then  turned  to  the  Doctor,  who  w^as  early  on  hand,  and  asked  of 
him  the  same  information.  The  Doctor  was  a  bright  man,  and  did 
not  need  to  "  figure."  He  kept  his  books  in  his  head,  and  promptly 
replied  "  Fifty  dollars!  " 

I  was  not  sorry  when  the  train  bore  me  away  from  that  "hospitable" 
town.  I  would  be  dead  broke  in  a  minute  if  I  remained.  But  the  end 
was  not  yet.  The  Doctor  had  not  cured  me,  he  had  but  patched  the 
complaint.  Do  not  understand  me  that  I  enter  any  complaint  against 
his  professional  skill,  for  1  do  not.  In  all  seriousness,  I  think  he  was 
a  very  capable  physician,  thoroughly  understood  his  profession,  and 
perhaps,  if  I  had  been  two  weeks  under  his  treatment,  as  I  was  after- 
ward in  Sacramento  in  the  hands  of  another,  I  have  no  doubt  he 
would  have  done  as  well  by  me  and  cured  me  as  effectually  as  the 
Sacramento*man.  But  then  he  was  too  high-toned  for  me.  I  did  not 
own  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad  nor  was  I  a  millionaire — simply  a 
Government  official  upon  a  salary  of  a  few  thousand  a  year,  which 
would  not  go  very  far  at  those  rates.  I  could  not  afford  to  pay  him  a 
thousand  dollars  for  the  job,  when  the  Sacramento  man  underbid  him 
by  more  than  $900.  I  think  he  mistook  me  for  Governor  Stanford. 
It  j\'as  said  that  we  looked  very  much  alike  in  those  days — I  know  we 


*70  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUJTTAIKS. 

both  wore  rather  broad-brimmed  white  hats.  But  we  have  discarded 
them  since.  He  has  grown  to  be  a  senator,  and  it  would  not  become 
our  oflBcial  dignity.  I  have  often  wished,  however,  that  the  Governor 
had  paid  that  bill.  But  I  lay  in  Sacramento  for  two  weeks,  chafing 
under  the  dispensation  that  held  me  in  chains  to  my  room  at  the  Old 
Eagle  Hotel,  kept  by  mine  host  the  genial  Callahan.  At  length  I  was 
well  enough  to  renew  my  journey  and  push  on  to  Tucson.  The  delaj^ 
of  two  weeks  would  shorten  my  visit  at  several  points  where  I  antici- 
pated much  pleasure  of  reunion  with  friends;  but,  then,  I  reasoned,  I 
can  halt  on  my  return  trip,  and  that  will  do  just  as  well. 

I  had  paid  my  bills  and  was  all  ready  to  move  on  in  light  march- 
ing order,  and  was  on  the  eve  of  bidding  my  good  friends  a  farewell  until 
my  return,  when  a  telegram  was  handed  me  which  had  just  reached  the 
hotel     I  opened  it  and  read : 

"Please  go  to  Virginia  City,  Montana;  important  matters;  do 
not  delay ;  will  find  instructions  there." 

It  was  from  the  Department  at  Washington ;  had  been  sent  to 
Salt  Lake  City  and  wired  over  the  line  until  it  finally  reached  me  at 
Sacramento.  It  was  like  the  cloud-burst  in  the  Utah  mountains ;  it 
took  my  breath  away.  What !  abandon  my  trip  to  Tucson,  after  all 
this  preparation  and  delay,  now  that  I  had  proceeded  so  far  on  my 
journey,  and  withal  so  remote  from  Montana  Territory  ?  Two  thou- 
sand miles  lay  between  me  and  Virginia  City,  Montana,  and  here  was 
a  message  that  talked  as  if  it  said,  "  Mr.  C,  just  run  over  to  Baltimore 
from  Washington ;  there  is  an  important  matter  for  you  to  attend  to ; 
you  will  find  out  all  about  it  when  you  get  there  I "  I  was  disconcerted 
entirely.  I  determined,  however,  that  I  would  lay  the  facts  before 
the  Department  and  beg  permission  to  proceed  on  my  journey.  And 
so  I  sent  a  ten-dollar  telegram  to  Washington,  explaining  everything, 
and  api)ealing  not  to  be  taken  hence  from  the  consummation  of  the  trip 
that  had  cost  me  already  so  much  pain,  and  that  would  cost  me  still 
greater  by  disappointing  my  friends  at  Tucson  and  breakfhg  my  word 
with  the  delegate.  The  reply  came  in  due  time.  It  was  brief  and 
laconic: 

"  Tour  instructions  await  you  at  Virginia  City.     Proceed  at  once." 

There  was  nothing  more  to  be  said  or  done.  Go  I  must,  or 
resign.  If  I  resigned  of  what  account  would  I  be  as  an  oflBcial  m  Ari- 
zona ?    I  would  be  3i functus  officio^  of  no  earthly  account  so  far  as  a 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  471 

recommendation  for  a  post  route  or  a  mail  service  was  concerned.  It 
was,  therefore,  with  much  sorrow  and  mortification  of  spirit  that  I 
prepared  to  return  over  the  road  I  had  but  a  short  time  before  jour- 
neyed in  anticipation  of  a  long  and  pleasant  trip  through  Southern 
California  to  my  friend  in  Arizona.  To  him  I  made  known  the  cause 
of  my  disappointment,  and  with  a  fretful  spirit  took  my  seat  in  the 
eastern-bound  train  that  day  for  Salt  Lake  City. 

How  little  do  we  know  or  dream  of  what  the  great  future  will 
unfold.  How  narrow  the  span  of  human  vision  beyond  which  our  mor- 
tal eyes  are  permitted   to  gaze.      Dryden   spoke  with  the  voice  of 

inspiration  when  he  said  : 

• 
"  God  has  wisely  hidden  from  human  sight 
The  dark  decrees  of  fate, 
And  sown  their  seeds  in  depths  of  night; 
He  laughs  at  all  the  giddy  turns  of  State, 
Where  mortals  search  too  soon  and  fear  too  late." 

Had  I  been  permitted  to  pursue  my  end  within  a  few  short 
days,  or  weeks  at  most,  I  should  have  met  with  a  horrible  death  at  the 
hands  of  a  savage  foe.  Old  Chief  Cochise  and  a  large  number 
of  his  band  were  on  the  warpath,  raiding  the  lone  settlements, 
intercepting  the  herders  driving  cattle  from  Old  Mexico  into  the  Terri- 
tory, and  murdering  indiscriminately  all  who  were  so  unfortunate  as  to 
fall  in  the  lines  of  their  bloody  pathway.  They  crossed  the  old  But- 
terfield  Overland  stage  route,  near  Dragoon  Pass,  just  as  Col.  John  F. 
Stone  and  party,  accompanied  by  a  guard  of  five  priv^ate  soldiers  of  the 
Thirty-Second  United  States  Infantry,  were  pushing  on  their  way  to 
Apaclie  Pass,  their  first  point  of  observation,  where  Col.  Stone  was 
part  owner  of  a  gold  mine  and  new  ten-stamp  mill,  which  was  about 
to  make  a  "clean-up"  of  its  first  run.  The  rumble  of  the  stage-coach 
fell  upon  the  savage  ear  long  before  it  came  in  sight  with  its  unsus- 
pecting occupants,  and  the  wily  foes  secreted  themselves  in  ambush 
to  await  its  coming.  IS^ot  dreaming  of  the  danger  and  death  and 
horrible  torture  that  lay  instantly  before  them,  the  coach-load 
of  victims  approached  the  Indian  ambush,  and  immediately  were 
assailed  by  a  murderous  fire  from  the  secret  foe.  Not  one  of  all  the 
number  escaped.  Not  one  remained  to  tell  the  story  of  the  horrible 
torture  and  death  of  his  brave  companions.  They  perished  as  hun- 
dreds-of  other  brave  pioneers,  who  fell  in  the  pride  and  glory  of  their 


472  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

lofty  manhood  in  the  wilderness  of  the  far  West  while  carving  the 
paths  of  early  empire.  Fate  reserved  me  for  other  scenes  and  events, 
and  I  continue  to  journey  on  whde  they  sleep  in  their  bloody  graves. 
When  Cochise  heard  the  rumbling  of  the  stage  coach  he  and  his 
savages  were  in  pursuit  of  five  herders  who  were  driving  a  band  of 
500  cattle  into  the  Territory  from  Old  Mexico.  Immediately  after 
the  slaughter  and  robbery  of  the  coiich  load  of  travelers,  he  proceeded 
again  after  the  cattle  and  herders  whose  attention  had  been  attracted 
to  the  massacre  by  the  firing  of  the  Indians.  They  alone  witnessed 
afar  off  the  bloody  deed,  and  on  the  pui-suit  of  the  savages  who 
captured  their  whole  band  of  cattle,  made  their  way  to  Camp  Apache, 
and  told  the  story  of  the  terrible  massacre.  The  commander  of  the 
post  dispatched  Lieutenant  Barnard,  of  Company  G,  First  United  States 
Cavalry,  with  a  strong  detachment  to  visit  the  scene  of  the  massacre 
and  bury  the  mutilated  i-emains  of  the  unfortunate  men.  This  duty 
he  performed,  and  their  lifeless  bodies  that  so  lately  had  quivered  with 
the  fiendish  torture  of  the  savage  were  laid  to  rest  on  the  spot  where 
they  fell  beneath  the  knife  and  buUet  of  the  red-handed  fiends.  They 
were  not,  however,  permitted  thus  to  repose.  Early  in  the  spring  <  f 
the  year  following,  two  citizens  of  Tucson,  W.  G.  Ross  and  Charles  O. 
Brown,  while  passing  over  this  spot  beheld  a  sad  sight.  The  coyotes 
had  uncovered  the  graves  and  dragged  the  corpses  from  their  cere- 
ments. Their  bones  lay  scattered  over  the  ground.  Like  the  grave 
diggers  in  the  play  of  *'  Handet,"  they  too  beheld  a  skull — no,  not  a 
skull — only  a  piece  of  skull  that  had  escaped  the  ravenous  jaws  of  the 
wild  coyote.  Within  a  part  of  the  jawbone  was  found  a  solitary  tooth 
filled  with  shining  gold.  It  had  in  life  belonged  to  that  magificent 
frame  that  once  towered  far  above  its  fellows,  when  I  had  first  beheld 
it  in  a  distant  city,  not  far  from  where  the  Atlantic  laves  its  western 
shores.  There  in  the  capital  city  of  the  Union,  it  was  the  embodiment 
of  perfect  manly  beauty.  It  was  all  that  could  be  identified  of  that 
glorious  form  of  manhood,  once  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes  in  the  public 
place,  the  social  hall,  the  crowded  caravansary,  the  jostling  street  and 
the  busy  marts  of  trade.  All  was  gone  but  the  solitary  tooth,  the 
broken  jaw,  the  shattered  skull.  No ;  not  all,  fain  would  I  sa\' !  Only 
the  semblance  of  the  man  majestic  was  gone.  The  casket  in  which 
reposed  the  jewel.  The  man  himself,  in  all  his  grandeur  yet  remained 
in  the  true  measure  of  his  manhood,  and  some  dav  I  shall  see  him  and 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  473 

greet  him  as  of  old.  But  that  which  remained,  these  men  with  rough 
hands  but  tender  hearts,  as  all  brave  men  are,  gathered  and  tenderly 
reburied,  this  time  beyond  the  reach  of  the  coyote  and  the  clawing 
wolf,  where,  perhaps  ere  this,  they  have  mouldered  into  dust ;  for 
many  years  have  passed  since  then.  A  bloody  glove  was  found,  one 
of  Colonel  Stone's  gloves ;  he  always  wore  them,  tho'  a  son  of  "  the 
hamlet  where  the  rude  forefathers  dwelt ; "  for  he  was  a  man  of  great 
refinement  both  of  mind  and  person.  Yes ;  there  was  blood  upon  the 
glove — perhaps  he  had  attempted  to  stanch  with  it  the  life-current 
that  was  ebbing  from  the  wound  of  a  dying  comrade.  It  would  be 
just  like  him,  within  the  barricade  of  the  doomed  coach,  to  forget 
himself  in  the  hour  of  his  dire  peril  to  aid  his  brother-sufferer.  It  may 
have  been  the  hand  that  first  reached  out  across  the  confines  of  eter- 
nity, to  grasp  in  loving  embrace  the  hand  of  one  who  had  passed  on 
before. 


CHAPTER 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  YOSEMITE  VALLEY. 

TosEMTTE  Valley  is  a  gorge  or  chasm  in  the  Sierra  Xevada 
Mountains,  near  the  headvYaters  of  the  Merced  River,  which  nins 
through  its  entire  length  from  east  to  west.  Its  elevation  is  4,000 
feet  aboYe  the  sea  level;  its  length  ten  miles,  its  breadth  one  mile. 
It  is  enclosed  on  both  sides  by  solid  granite  walls — precipitous  and 
I^erpendicnlar,  varying  from  two  thousand  to  Ayc  thousand  feet. 

The  sole  entrance  on  horseback  to  this  wonderful  chasm  is  by  the 
way  of  two  trails,  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  called,  respectiYeh%  the 
CoultersviUe  and  Mariposa  trails. 

At  the  east  end  the  valley  terminates  in  three  canons,  each  bring 
a  fork  of  the  Merced,  the  middle  being  the  most  important.  Through 
the  great  depression  of  the  valley  the  waters  of  the  vast  surrounding 
Alpine  region  flow  toward  the  center  in  numerous  rapid  streams 
of  cold,  clear  water,  and  leap  from  the  top  of  the  walls  to  unite  with 
the  Merced,  forming  loft}-  cataracts  and  imparting  life  and  vegetation 
to  what  otherwise  would  be  but  barren  and  gray  walls  of  rocks,  and 
an  emerald  green  to  the  deep  valley. 

Mariposa  is  a  splendid  starting  point  for  the  tourist,  who  goes  to 
view  the  wonders  of  the  Yosemite  and  the  mighty  grove  of  Mammoth 
trees,  half-way  between  Mariposa  and  the  Great  YaUey,  has  become 
famous  in  the  published  journals  of  travelers.  Beautiful  vistas, 
formed  by  giant  trunks  of  trees,  stretch  far  away  until  lost  in  the  dim 
distance,  arched  bv  overhano'ino'  branches  of  the  tall  Taxodiums  and 
the  white  blossomed  lx>ughs  of  the  abounding  dog-wood.  Xone,  but 
those  who  have  personally  inspected  these  wonderful  pixnluctions  of 
the  soil  of  California,  can  lealize  their  stupendous  magnitude.  IIow 
can  it  be  possible  that  a  traveler  on  horseback  could  ride  under 
a  single  tree,  a  distance  of  153  feet?  And  yet,  marvelous  as  it  may 
appear,  the  note  books  of  many  such  travelers  record  that  fact.  One 
tourist,  on  vYalking  through  a  mighty  tree  that  had  fallen  and  been 
burned  oi  *-,  came  suddenly  upon  the  lair  of  a  grizzly  bear,  who  had 

474 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOU.NTAIXS.  475 

taken  up  its  abode  to  rear  its  young.  In  the  language  of  another, 
"The  mightiest  tree  that  has  yet  been  found  now  lies  upon  the 
ground,  and,  fallen  as  it  lies,  it  is  a  wonder  still;  it  is  charred,  and 
time  has  stripped  it  of  its  heavy  bark^  and  yet  across  the  butt  of  the 
tree,  as  it  lay  upturned,  it  measured  33  feet  without  its  bark:  there 
can  be  no  question  that  in  its  vigor,  with  its  bark  on,  it  Avas  ^0  feet 
in  diameter,  or  120  feet  in  circumference;  only  about  150  feet  of  the 
trunk  remains,  yet  the  cavity  where  it  fell  is  still  a  large  hollow, 
beyond  the  portion  burned  off;  and,  upon  pacing  it,  measuring  from 
the  root  120  paces,  and  estimating  the  branches,  the  tree  must  have 
been  400  feet  high.  We  believe  it  to  be  the  largest  tree  yet  dis- 
covered." 

Estimates  grounded  on  the  Avell-known  principle  of  yearly 
cortical  increase,  indisputably  throw  back  the  birth  of  the  largest 
giant  as  far  as  1,200  B.  C.  Tims  their  tender  saplings  were  running 
up  just  as  the  gates  of  Troy  were  tumbling  down,  and  some  of  them 
had  fulfilled  the  lifetime  of  the  late  Hartford  Charter  Oak,  when 
Solomon  called  his  master  masons  to  refresliment  from  the  building  of 
the  temple.  These  big  trees  are  at  Clark's,  five  miles  off  the  road  to 
Yosemite.  Our  journey  to  this  point  Avas  over  many  ridges,  Avhere 
cascades  of  cold,  clear  water  poured  down  in  granite  gaps,  fed  from 
lofty  snoAv  peaks. 

For  a  distance  of  twelve  miles  from  this  point  we  traversed  a  series 
of  uplands  that  would  have  proved  fatal  to  an  asthmatic  patient,  but 
we  Avere  reAvarded  by  the  view  of  a  beautiful  green  meadow  walled  on 
one  side  by  a  snowy  range  on  Avhich  the  noontide  sun  shed  its  shim- 
mering rays.  We  were  now  on  a  plane  Avith  the  grim  edge  of  the 
mighty  precipice  and  embattled  Avails  of  the  farfamed  Yosemite  Yalley. 
A  dense  forest  and  Avild  profusion  of  leaves  forming  a  deeper  shade, 
obscured  our  approach  to  the  brink  of  this  wonderful  gap  in  the  heart 
of  the  mountain.  We  stood  at  "  Inspiration  Point "  on  the  edge  of  a 
precipice  3,000  feet  deep — a  mighty  granite  wall  whose  vast  distance 
along  a  perpendicular  line,  "  sheer  as  a  plummet,"  shot  from  our  feet 
into  a  chasm  that  baffled  our  vision.  Beyond,  there  was  another  Avail 
similar  to  that  over  Avhich  we  stood,  forming  the  tremendous  battlements 
of  the  mighty  chasm  far  doAvn  below.  In  the  beautiful  language  of  a 
Avriter  describing  this  inspired  scene:  "  Our  eyes  Avere  spell-bound  to 
the  tremendous  precipice  Avhich  stood  smiling,  no/  frownirg,  at  us  in  all 


476  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAJXS. 

the  serene  radiance  of  snow  white  granite,  broadly  burning,  rather  than 
glistening  in  the  white-hot  splendors  of  the,setting  sun.  From  that 
sun  clear  back  to  the  first  trace  of  purple  twilight  flushing  the  eastern 
sk}^  rim.  Yes,  as  if  it  were  the  very  buttment  of  the  eternally  blue 
California  heaven,  ran  that  wall,  always  sheer  as  the  plummet,  without 
a  visible  break  through  which  squirrel  might  climb  or  sparrow  fly,  so 
broad  that  it  was  at  first  faint-lined,  like  the  paper  on  which  I  write, 
by  the  loftiest  waterfall  in  the  world,  so  lofty  that  its  very  breadth 
could  not  dwarf  it,  while  the  mighty  pines  and  Douglas  fii-s  along  its 
edge  rose  mistily  from  the  granite  lid  of  the  Great  Yalle^^'s  upgazing 
eye." 

It  is  difficult  for  the  mind  to  grasp  the  magnitude  of  the  wonder- 
ful formations  upon  which  the  eye  was  fixed,  much  less  to  portary 
them  as  they  are.  Projecting  boldly  into  the  valley  from  the  prevail- 
ing base  line,  a  vast  square  stupendous  tower  appeared  as  if  hewn  out 
of  the  solid  rock  by  an  army  of  sculptors.  A  battle  might  have  been 
fought  on  its  level  top,  a  town  built  above  its  granite  walls,  on  whose 
spires  and  domes  would  have  fallen  as  on  its  flinty  surface  the  undulat- 
ing waves  of  light  and  shadow  from  the  golden  sun  of  the  Occident. 

Far  to  the  eastward  and  5,000  feet  above  this  valle\'  rose  a  mighty 
granite  hemisphere,  the  Great  Xorth  Dome,  El  Capitan^  unobscured  by 
tree  or  shrub,  its  pinnacles,  minarets  and  towers  reflecting  the  radiance 
of  the  fading  sunlight.  The  eye  now  rests  ujx)n  the  Great  South 
Dome,  and  you  recall  the  beautiful  Indian  legend  of  Tis-sa-ack. 

Tis-sa-ack  was  the  tutelar  goddess  of  the  vaUey,  as  Tu-toch-anula 
was  its  fostering  god,  the  former  a  radiant  maiden,  the  latter  an  ever 
young  immortal.  Fascinated  by  his  fair  companion,  Tu-toch-anula 
spent  in  her  arms  all  the  long  days  of  the  occidental  summer,  dallying 
and  embracing  until  the  vaUey  tribes  began  to  starve  for  want  of  the 
crops  which  his  supervision  should  have  ripened,  until  a  deputation  of 
venerable  men  came  from  the  dj^ing  people  to  prostrate  themselves  at 
the  foot  of  Tis-sa-ack.  Filled  with  anguish  at  her  nation's  woes,  she 
arose  from  her  lover's  arms  and  cried  for  aid  from  the  Great  Spirit. 
"With  a  terrible  thunder  sound,  the  mighty  cone  split  from  heaven  to 
earth,  its  frontal  half  falhng  down  to  dam  the  snow  waters  back  into 
a  lake,  whence  to  this  day  the  beautiful  valley  stream  takes  one  of  its 
branches,  the  remaining  segment  to  stand  through  all  time  as  the 
Great  South  Dome,  under  the  immemorial  title  of  Tis-sa-ack.     On  its 


GLIMPSES  OF  THE  YOSEMITE. 

477 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  479 

brow  Tu-toch-anula  carved  the  image  of  the  divine  maiden,  as  lie  had 
carved  his  own  on  El  Caj3itan. 

Concentrating  your  gaze  upon  the  mystic  depths  of  the  vast  emer- 
ald amphitheater  below,  your  eye  rests  upon  a  sweep  of  green,  that, 
broad  and  beautiful  just  beneath,  narrows  to  a  mere  strip  between  the 
abutments  that  from  the  foundation  of  the  great  domes,  "  far  to  the 
westward,  "widening  more  and  more,  it  opens  into  the  bosom  of  great 
mountain  ranges,  into  a  field  of  light,  misty  by  its  own  excess  into  an 
unspeakable  suffusion  of  glory,  rising  from  the  phoenix-like  pile  of  the 
dying  sun.  Here  it  lies  almost  as  treeless  as  some  rich  old  clover 
mead  ;  yonder  its  luxurious,  smooth  greens  give  way  to  a  dense  wood 
of  cedars,  oaks  and  pines.  IS'ot  a  living  creature,  man  or  beast  breaks 
the  visible  silence  of  this  inmost  paradise,  but  for  ourselves,  standing 
at  the  precipice,  the  great  world,  petrified  as  it  were,  rock  on  rock, 
might  "well  be  running  back  in  stone  and  grassy  dreams  to  the  hour 
when  God  had  given  him  as  yet  but  two  daughters  the  crag  and  the 
clover.  Earth  below  was  as  motionless  as  the  ancient  heavens  above, 
save  for  the  shining  serpent  of  the  Merced,  which  silently  trailed  along 
the  middle  of  the  grass,  and  twinkled  his  burnished  back  in  the  sunset 
wherever  for  a  space  he  glided  out  of  the  shadow  of  the  wood." 

We  did  not  descend  into  the  valley  until  we  had  beheld  the  sub- 
lime vision  of  the  morning  sunlight  on  the  mountains,  those  mount- 
ains, with  their  lofty  domes  and  pyramids,  pinnacles  and  minarets, 
bathed  in  the  glories  of  the  rising  sun,  keeping  ceaseless  watch  and 
ward  over  the  hidden  mysteries  of  their  vast  depths  below. 

That  night,  as  we  lay  by  the  side  of  our  camp-fire,  we  saw  the  stars 
one  by  one  come  forth  in  solemn  beauty  and  pin  the  veil  of  heaven  to 
its  lofty  vault.  And  the  moon,  "an  orphan  orb,"  rode  slowly  through 
the  cloudless  sky,  lighting  the  distant  turrets  with  its  silvery  rays.  Its 
soft  beams  mingled  with  the  etherial  snow  that  crowned  their  tall  sum- 
mits, and,  as  if  an  angel's  "wing  had  gently  stirred  the  peaceful  summer 
air,  we  felt  the  soft  breezes  from  their  distant  heights  as  our  eyelids 
closed  in  slumber,  their  last  gaze  fixed  on  their  ermine  tops  bathed  in 
the  soft  glories  of  "  snow  and  moonlight." 

The  descent  into  the  valley  is  about  three  miles  long.  Only  those 
who  have  accomplished  the  journey  can  fully  understand  and  realize 
the  dangers,  perils  and  discomforts  and  the  amount  of  real  hard  labor 
involved  in  the  undertaking.     In  some  places  the  road  is  frightfully 


480  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    IIOUXTAIXS. 

steep  and  almost  impassable,  bat  not  impracticable  to  the  California 
"  bronco,'"  provide<l  jou  possess  the  courage  to  retain  your  seat  upon 
his  back  over  the  painful  and  circuitous  way  where  each  moment  you 
fear  his  impetus  will  tumble  you  headlong  over  the  steeps  of  terror  that 
face  you  at  each  step.  The  descent  in  a  direct  line  would  be  impos- 
sible, and  the  traQ  is  as  tortuous  as  a  spiral. 

On  reaching  the  banks  of  the  Merced,  we  beheld  the  frowning 
Walls  of  granite  on  every  side,  and  although  a  midday  sun  poured 
down  its  flaming  rays,  far  above  us  there  was  a  sombre  gloom  within 
their  silent  depths.  The  solitude  was  pix)found.  We  were  within  the 
very  heart  of  the  bold  and  rugged  Sierras,  whose  foundation  stones 
were  laid  by  the  Eternal  Architect  amid  the  mighty  convulsions  of 
nature.  We  were,  however,  just  standing  within  the  portals  of 
Majesty  ;  we  had  not  \'et  entered  the  nave  of  the  great  temple  which 
nature  had  built  for  her  worshipers. 

There  was  the  entrance  right  before  us,  an  enormous  gap  formed 
by  two  perpendicular  walls,  starting  up  3,000  feet  or  more,  and  stand- 
ing like  sentinels  on  guard  at  the  approach  of  profane  feet  to  invade 
the  great  Rock  Temple,  fashioned  by  the  God  of  Nature.  It  was  the 
morning  sun,  that  spread  a  glory  on  the  panorama  around  us.  Ascend- 
ing the  blue  arch,  it  threw  long  shadows  to  the  rocky  domes  across  the 
valley  until  they  began  to  climb  the  face  of  the  northern  wall. 

The  first  wonder  you  behold  is  the  "  Bridal  Veil  Falls  "  formed  by 
a  lateral  stream  that  approaches  from  the  south.  Here  dwelt  Po-ho-no, 
an  evd  spirit  of  Indian  mythology.  The  savage  lowers  his  voice  to  a 
whisper  and  trembles  with  fear  while  passing  Po-ho-no  and  the  utter- 
ance of  his  name  is  the  Indian  dread.  The  fall  descends  in  an  un- 
broken sheet  of  1,000  feet  perpendicular  and  appears  as  a  plaything  in 
the  wind  ;  its  filmy,  silvery  lace  of  spray  being  constantly  carried  back 
and  forth  from  the  base  of  the  wall.  In  the  spring,  when  the  volume 
of  water  is  far  greater  than  in  summer,  it  is  confined  in  a  narrow 
trough  before  it  takes  its  leap  and  forms  a  compact  and  graceful  curve. 

A  little  beyond  is  the  great  Yosemite  Fall,  formed  by  a  stream 
of  the  same  name.  At  this  point  the  waU  forms  three  courses  with 
two  shelves  or  benches,  each  of  which  receives  the  faUing  torrent 
which  reaches  tTie  valley  in  three  distinct  leaps.  The  first  fall  is  1,600 
feet,  thence  rushing  with  great  fury  it  takes  -the  second  leap  of  200 
feet,  and  then  the  third  of  over  400  feet,  altogether  the  entire  height 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  481 

of  the  falling  waters  is  over  2,200  feet.  Its  amazing  height  and  wildest 
character  of  scenery  creates  it  one  of  nature's  most  sublime  wonders, 
as  it  flutters  and  slowly  unfolds  itself  over  the  brow  of  the  mighty 
wall  of  light  gray  granite,  swinging  majestically  in  the  breeze. 

Close  to  the  cataract  the  traveler  finds  himself  in  a  deep,  solemn 
recess  of  the  granite  wall,  surrounded  by  scenery  wilder  and  grander 
than  he  has  ever  before  beheld.  The  rocks  rise  up  to  the  heavens,  the 
roaring  waters  pour  down  as  if  rolling  from  the  blue  vault  above,  the 
stern  aspect  of  rock  and  massive  bowlder  at  his  feet,  and  the  wild 
turmoil  of  the  falling  waters  make  a  scene  fashioned  only  by  the  gods. 

Travelers  have  instituted  comparisons  between  Tosemite  and 
Niagara.  There  should,  however,  be  drawn  no  line  of  comparison, 
inasmuch  as  each  possesses  its  own  personality  of  rock,  river  and  fail. 
They  widely  differ.  They  are  indeed  well  nigh  the  opposite  of  each 
other.  Both  are  mighty  wonders,  but  of  no  quality  in  common.  They 
are  alike  in  but  one  essential.  They  are  both  waterfalls.  Yosemite 
ic  remarkable  for  its  height ;  Niagara  for  its  breadth  and  vast  volume 
of  water.  Yosemite  is  half  a  mile  hiofh :  Niao:ara  half  a  mile  wide. 
Yosemite  is  cut  horizontally  into  three  different  falls;  Niagara  remains 
perpendicularly  one  and  the  same.  Niagara,  projecting  water  with 
wonderful  rapidity  into  water,  creates  the  sound  of  artillery ;  Yo- 
semite pours  its  flood  of  water  upon  rock  alone,  and  the  effect  is  the 
roll  of  musketry.  Yosemite  is  vast  in  its  surroundings ;  Niagara  is 
mighty  in  itself.  Both  in  common  are  the  handiwork  of  Nature,  Avhose 
continuations  differ  in  continuity.  Both  are  sublime  because  both 
belong  to  Nature  in  her  most  wonderful  creations. 

Eastwardly  to  the  left  and  near  the  base  of  the  Northern  wall 
lies  Mirror  Lake,  a  crystal  pool,  a  mile  in  circumference,  reflecting 
within  its  transparent  depths  the  lofty  domes  and  columns  rising  over- 
head. Here  the  spirits  of  the  mountains  gazed  upon  their  god-like 
forms  from  the  brows  of  these  Alpine  heights. 

Eastward  we  enter  the  canon  from  which  the  main  branch  of  the 
Merced  emerges  into  the  valley.  Yast  walls  of  rock  loom  up  on  either 
side,  and  on  the  south  a  long  slope  stretches  from  the  base  of  the  wall 
to  the  water,  covered  with  massive  bowlders  and  huge  piles  of  rock. 
Here  the  Merced  fights  its  way  with  mad  fury  over  its  rocky  bed, 
forming  continuously  a  series  of  beautiful  cascades.  Two  miles  beyond 
this  point  the  hand  of  Nature  has  fixed  the  barrier  to  man's  further 

31 


482  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

progress.  A  perpendicular  ledge  appears,  600  feet  high,  over  which 
the  stream  plunges,  forming  the  beautiful  Yemon  Falls,  which  for 
grace  and  beauty  compare  with  the  "  Bridal  Yeil."  At  its  base  is  to  be 
seen  the  beautiful  phenomenon  of  sunlight  in  the  mist  and  spray — the 
circular  rainbow  so  magnificent  at  Kiagara,  but  at  this  falls,  instead 
of  a  bow,  it  is  a  perfect  circle,  with  all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow. 

A  mile  beyond  Yernor  Falls  are  the  Kevada  Falls,  a  mass  of 
foaming  waters  spread  over  the  face  of  the  precipice,  800  feet  high. 
It  is  the  first  great  leap  of  the  Merced  as  it  rolls  on  to  the  hidden 
chasm  below,  and  presents  the  greatest  volume  of  water  of  all  the  falls. 

No  scenery  in  the  world  surpasses  in  wildness  and  grandeur  that 
which  surrounds  you  between  Yernor  and  Nevada  Falls.  Ascending 
the  latlder  that  enables  you  to  climb  to  the  level  of  Yernor  Falls,  and 
surmounting  the  rocks  that  lie  everywhere  in  your  path,  you  gaze  in 
fixed  admiration  on  a  perfect  basin  half  a  mile  in  diameter,  whose 
sides  rise  2,000  feet  above  and  into  which  the  river  rolls  over  the 
precipice,  dashing  upon  the  rocks  below  in  foaming  rapids.  Far  above 
you  are  the  Alpine  heights,  forever  locked  from  the  hand  of  man. 
Behind  you  are  the  rushing  falls  of  the  Xevada,  and  over  all  the  clear 
blue  sky  of  California,  unf retted  by  cloud  or  mist.  Turn  where  3'ou 
will  impregnable  battlements  encircle  you,  and  you  must  descend  the 
way  you  came,  over  the  line  of  stupendous  precipices  formed  by  the 
convulsions  of  the  ages. 

"  "We  are  at  the  end  of  the  wonderful  series  of  Yosemite  effects. 
Eight  hundred  feet  above  us,  could  we  chmb  them,  we  should  find  the 
silent  causes  of  power.  There  lie  the  broad,  still  pools  that  hold  the 
reserved  affluences  of  the  snow  peaks ;  there  might  ,  we  see,  glittering 
like  diamond  lances  in  the  sun,  the  eternal  snowpeaks  themselves.  But 
they  would  still  be  as  far  above  us  as  when  we  stood  below  on  the 
lowest  valley  bottom  whence  we  came.  Even  from  Inspiration  Point, 
where  our  trail  first  struck  the  battlement,  we  could  see  far  beyond  the 
valley  to  the  rising  sun,  towering  mightily  above  Tis-sa-ack  herself,  the 
everlasting  snow  forehead  of  Castle  Bock,  his  crown's  serrated  edge 
cutting  the  sky  at  the  topmost  height  of  the  Sierra.  TVe  had  spoken 
of  reaching  him,  of  holding  converse  with  the  king  of  all  the  giants. 
This  whole  weary  way  have  we  toiled  since  then — and  we  know  better 
now.  We  have  endured  all  this  pain  only  to  learn  still  deeper  life's 
saddest  lesson : 

"Climb  forever,  and  there  is  still  an  inaccessible!" 


J 


CHAPTEE  XXXIIL 

THE  FIRST  VIGILANCE  COMMITTEE  IN  CALIFORNIA  AND  THE  GREAT  VIGILANCE 
COMMITTEE  IxV  1851— THE  TOLLING  OF  THE  FIRE  BELLS— THE  HANGING  OF 
THE  PROSCRIBED  ON  SUNDAY  FROM  THE  WINDOWS  OF  THE  VIGILANTES' 
HEADQUARTERS-SCENES  AND  EVENTS- NAMES  AND  DATES. 

In  the  month  of  T^ovember,  1850,  there  were  eight  primitive 
houses  situated  on  the  extreme  point  of  a  little  peninsula  for  projecting 
into  the  bay  of  San  Francisco.  It  was  separated  from  the  surrounding 
country  by  a  rocky  mountain  range  and  a  deep  creek.  The  town 
itself  was  twenty  miles  distant.  There  were  eight  houses  in  the  town, 
formerly  occupied  by  five  Irishmen  who  had  gone.  An  American 
hunter  now  occupied  one  and  a  band  of  seven  French  fishermen, 
deserters  from  a  French  man-of-war,  the  others.  On  the  opposite 
side,  and  nearly  at  the  same  distance  from  the  town,  there  was  another 
French  settlement  of  five  fishermen.  All  of  the  cattle  owned  by  the 
two  settlements  was  a  single  goat,  the  loss  of  which  would  have  proved 
to  be  a  public  calamity.  It  had  come  with  its  master  from  France 
around  Cape  Horn.  Besides  the  hunting  and  fishing  people,  there  was 
beyond  these  settlements  also  a  regular  farmer,  called  the  Irish  Captain, 
although  he  was  neither  Irish  nor  a  captain.  By  birth  he  was  a  Dane 
and  by  occupation  a  farmer  all  his  life.  He  possessed  a  valuable  stock 
of  imported  cattle,  a  rare  thing  at  that  period. 

Farther  into  the  interior,  on  the  other  side  of  the  mountain  range, 
was  the  Cornelia  Rancho,  a  California  manor-house  constructed  of 
rough  beams  and  surrounded  by  mud  and  cattle  instead  of  gardens, 
parks,  green  grass  and  flowers.  Cornelia  was  a  native  grandee,  and 
claimed  the  right  to  400  square  miles  of  territory.  Although  the 
invasion  of  her  country  by  the  gold-seekers  had  swept  away  the 
greater  part  of  her  herds,  yet  there  still  remained  over  a  thousand  head. 
In  full  dress,  adorned  with  gold  chains,  pearls  and  jewels,  she  looked 
very  magnificent,  seated  in  a  large  wagon  drawn  by  two  oxen  and 
sixteen  mules,  roughing  it  over  a  country  without  roads.  This  of 
course  on  occasions  of  state  and  rarely  occurred.  Her  home  dress, 
however,  was  an  old  broad-brimmed  straw  hat,  her  son's  boots,  a  loose 

483 


4i>4  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUXTAIN^S. 

white  shirt  and  a  short  petticoat  of  coarse  red  flanneL  She  ruled  over 
thirty  Indian  servants  besides  her  son  twenty-four  years  of  age,  and  a 
homeless  Portuguese  adventurer,  who,  seeking  "a  support,  had  drifted  to 
that  Eden  before  the  rude  gold-seekers  dispersed  the  charm  of  silence, 
simplicitj'^  and  ignorance  that  reigned  complete  everywhere. 

The  Irish  Captain  was  not  slow  to  perceive  his  advantage  over  the 
Marchioness.  He,  therefore,  proposed  to  her  to  take  charge  o^  her 
cattle  and  sell  it  to  the  best  advantage,  on  the  condition  that  he  should 
have  one-half  of  the  sum  realized.  Senora  Cornelia  very  reluctantly 
accepted  the  proposition. 

The  Irish  Captain  now  organized  for  the  common  defense  by 
calling  a  general  meeting,  and  binding  each  b\'  a  covenant  to  take  care 
of  his  neighbors  property  by  armed  force  whenever  necessary. 

But  a  short  time  thereafter  a  boat  laden  with  stolen  beef  from  the 
Seiiora's  herds  was  captured,  and  the  cattle  thieves  taken  prisoners  by 
the  Frenchmen  of  Low  Point.  The  thieves  were  tied,  put  under  a  boat 
turned  upside  down,  and  closely  watched.  The  Irish  Captain  himself 
escorted  the  prisoners,  on  the  following  morning,  to  San  Francisco, 
where  he  delivered  them  into  the  hands  of  the  civil  authorities.  The 
prisoners,  however,  instead  of  being  punished  by  the  civil  authorities, 
were  set  at  liberty,  and  retaliated  upon  the  Irish  Captain  by  butchering 
and  carrying  off  all  his  niilch  cows.  Thereupon  a  second  general  meet- 
ing was  held,  which  was  addressed  b\^  the  leader  in  a  very  impassioned 
manner,  declaring  it  foolish  to  believe  that  a  redress  of  their  griev- 
ances could  be  obtained  from  the  judicial  authorities.  To  be  convinced 
they  had  but  to  examine  the  mode  of  operations.  "  A  butcher  short 
of  meat  lent  a  small  sum  of  money,  say  $15,  to  a  native  caballero. 
The  caballero  would  not  have  troubled  himself  about  repayment  had 
he  not  wished  to  obtain  some  more  money,  losing,  by  gambling,  the 
first  sum  in  a  few  hours.  He  relates  his  misfortune  to  the  butcher,  and 
receives  from  the  latter  the  proposition  to  repay  him  in  beef  instead 
of  money.  This  liberal  proposition  is  immediately  accepted,  and  having 
been  provided  by  the  butcher  with  a  boat,  guns,  ammunition,  provisions, 
brandy,  and  a  few  more  dollars,  proceeds,  with  two  or  three  friends, 
after  the  beef,  which  he  obtains  by.  killing  and  carrying  away  any 
cattle  they  can  get  hold  of.  In  case  they  are  taken  prisonei*s,  the 
butchers  lawyer,  a  man  of  great  influence  with  the  magistrate,  defends 
them  and  secures  their  release.     If,  however,  the  plaintiflTs  case  is  more 


ECHOES    FKOil    THE    ROCKY    ilOUNTAINS.  485 

serious,  and  the  plaintiffs  have  friends  disposed  to  push  the  case,  then 
the  butcher,  ah'eady  bound  by  self-interest,  if  not  by  greater  ones,  and 
all  his  fellow-butchers,  being  engaged  in  the  same  base  work,  and  all 
their  clients,  come  forth  as  one  man  to  defeat  the  ends  of  justice.  The 
authorities  again  yield,  sometimes  after  a  mock  trial  of  the  cause." 

Under  the  inspiration  evoked  by  this  clear-stated  speech,  it  was 
unanimously  resolved  that  the  residents  of  the  peninsula  should  form 
themselves  into  a  permanent  committee  and  assume  all  the  duties  of 
police  and  courts  martial.  !N"o  suspected  party  should  be  permitted  to 
land.  Thieves  and  other  criminals  should  be  tried  before  the  commit- 
tee, and  if  found  guilty,  executed  on  the  spot. 

Thus  was  formed  the  first  vigilance  committee  that  ever  existed 
within  the  limits  of  California.  But  two  nights  following  they  cap- 
tured two  strangers  sitting  before  a  great  fire  they  had  built  to  keep  off 
grizzly  bears,  and  the  Irish  Captain  would  have  executed  them  on  the 
spot,  but  for  the  interference  of  two  American  hunters  who  declared  they 
must  have  some  form  of  trial.  They  confessed  themselves  to  be  Aus- 
tralian convicts,  but  declared  themselves  to  be  innocent  of  any  crime. 
They  were  sent  away  the  following  morning  and  ordered  not  to  return. 
One,  however,  returned  early  the  next  day  and  wished  to  buy  for  one 
■real  provisions  that  cost  one  hundred.  They  were  again  sent  away 
with  a  small  portion  of  food  and  told  that  it  would  be  madness  for 
them  to  return. 

"Madness!"  exclaimed  one,  "  I  have  been  much  more  mad  than  I 
should  be  in  exposing  myself  to  be  hanged.  It  is  impossible  to  love 
and  be  wise  ;  for  whosoever  esteemeth  too  much  amorous  affection 
quitteth  both  riches  and  wisdom."  This  was  a  blending  of  phi- 
losophy as  taught  by  the  ancient  Laberius.  "  Amare  et  sapere  mx 
deo  concediture,^''  and  of  the  Baconian  theory,  which  so  struck  the 
American  that  heat  once  invited  him  into  his  cabin  to  breakfast,  in  the 
hope  that  he  would  be  more  explicit  with  regard  to  his  concluding 
remark —  "I  did  so,  sir,  and  have  become  the  miserable  wretch  that  I 
am.  But  the  will  of  God  must  be  fulfilled !"  He  did  not,  however, 
gratify  the  American  but  left  with  an  excuse. 

"  The  will  of  God  "  was  shortly  thereafter  fulfilled.  "Within  a  week 
they  again  returned,  and,  in  the  absence  of  the  Americans  on  a  hunting 
expedition,  who  had  previously  saved  their  lives,  they  were  hung  to  a 
tree  and  one  other,  a  companion  they  brought  with  them,  shot  through 
the  forehead.     Regular  executions  had  begun. 


486  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAllfS. 

The  state  of  personal  safety  was  the  same  everywhere.  Cattle 
thieves  abounded,  and  retribution  was  swiftlv  meted  out  wherever  the 
crime  could  be  fixed  by  the  logic  of  circumstances.  Justice  and  injustice 
met  on  a  common  level.  Small  bodies  of  people  took  the  law  into  their 
own  hands  with  the  same  degree  of  conscious  right  as  emboldened  the 
acts  of  one,  two  or  ten  thousand.  Sometimes  a  single  individual  became 
at  once  judge,  jury  and  executioner.  On  the  highway  from  San 
Francisco  to  San  Jose  was  found  a  corpse  shot  through  the  body,  and 
to  the  lower  buttonhole  was  tied  a  placard,  upon  which  was  written  in 
very  legible  characters,  these  significant  words : 


"I  SHOT  HM  BECAUSE  HE  STOLE  MT  MULE. 
' ' JOHX   AXDREW  AXDERSOX, 

"AxDERSOX  Rascho  Saxta  Clara  Valley. 


He  was  not  a  murderer,  but  an  executor  of  the  law — the  lex  non 
scripta  against  all  cattle  thieves.  If  ten  men  could  capture  and  slay 
him  for  the  crime,  the  same  right  belonged  to  but  one  of  the  part}, 
provided  he  alone  could  accomplish  it. 

Pressed  by  these  vigorous  methods,  the  theives  and  robbers  of  the 
country  retired  to  the  larger  towns  and  settlements  to  ply  their  voca- 
tion. Popular  justice  there  was  neither  so  swift  or  retributive.  The 
law's  delay  saved  raan}'^  a  neck  that  ought  to  have  been  broken  accord 
ing  to  the  Mosaic  law.  Public  opinion,  however,  opposed  any  infringe- 
ment of  the  rights  and  modes  of  tHe  civil  authorities.  Public  opinion 
was  ranged  on  the  side  of  social  law,  though  it  diflfered  in  the  theory 
of  its  administering.  What  five  men  could  do  in  the  country  500 
could  not  accomplish  on  the  plaza  of  San  Francisco  or  Sacramento. 
Crime,  therefore,  increased  instead  of  diminished  in  all  the  larger 
towns.  It  became  bold  and  open-faced.  An  actor  was  shot  on  the 
stage  while  performing  the  character  of  King  Lear  by  an  enemy  in  the 
audience.  A  gang  of  ruffians  known  as  the  ''Hounds"  and  "Regu- 
lators," who  for  a  long  time  held  committed  assaults  and  robberies  on 
the  more  peax^eful  citizens,  one  Sunda}^  afternoon  collected  in  force 
and  made  an  attack  upon  the  Spanish  quarters,  with  a  view  of  driving 
them  forth  because  they  were  willing  to  work  at  cheai>er  rates  than  an 
American  workman.  So  furious  was  this  attack  that  the  mayor,  or 
alcalde^  as  he  was  termed,  being  without  a  police  force  to  maintain 
order,  was  compelle<l  to  call  upon  the  citizens  to  aid  in  dispersing  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  487 

rioters,  which  was  alone  accomplished  by  an  armed  force  of  300  men. 
Great  fires  followed,  caused  by  incendiaries,  involving  loss  of  life  and 
vast  destruction  of  property. 

On  the  19th  of  February,  1851,  the  store  of  a  well-known  citizen 
was  entered  about  8  o'clock  in  the  evening  by  two  men  and  its  pro- 
prietor, who  was  alone  at  the  time,  was  struck  with  a  slung-shot  and 
left  for  dead  by  his  assailants,  after  plundering  the  store. 

On  the  evening  of  May  4th,  1851,  another  great  incendiary  fire 
occurred  in  San  Francisco,  which  caused  the  death  of  nearly  one  hun- 
dred persons  and  the  horrible  disfigurement  of  many  more. 

Sacramento  was  the  first  of  the  larger  towns  to  organize  a  com- 
mittee of  its  citizens  for  the  protection  of  social  order,  and  its  execu- 
tions became  celebrated  for  the  interest  displayed  by  the  people  of  the 
surrounding  country.  The  first  of  these  was  at  night  on  the  plaza,  in 
the  light  "of  a  great  fire,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  assembled  multi- 
tude. The  office  of  hangman  was  conceded  as  a  post  of  honor  to  the 
most  respectable  and  wealthy  citizen  of  the  town.  Two  days  after  he 
paid  the  penalty  of  the  honor  by  being  himself  shot. 

San  Francisco  seemed  loth  to  begin  the  exercise  of  this  inherent 
power  of  the  people,  but  the  great  fire  of  May,  all  eady  alluded  to,  and  the 
appeals  of  the  Alta  California  and  California  Herald,  which  declared 
that  nothing  could  disturb  the  culprits'  equanimity  but  the  extreme 
measure  of  hanging  by  the  neck,  caused  a  revulsion  of  feeling,  and 
early  in  the  month  of  June  following,  200  of  its  most  influential 
citizens  formed  an  association  which  they  named  "  A  Committee  of 
Vigilance  for  the  Maintenance  of  the  Peace  and  Good  Order  of  Society, 
and  the  Preservation  of  the  Lives  and  Property  of  the  Citizens  of  San- 
Francisco.' 

Large  placards  afiixed  to  the  walls  of  public  places  in  the  city  and 
private  houses  of  the  citizens,  containing  the  rules  and  regulations 
adopted  for  maintaining  the  public  peace  of  the  city,  and  the  manner 
in  which  public  justice  should  be  administered — gave  notice  of  their 
organization.  The  tolling  of  the  bell  of  the  Monumental  fire-engine 
house  on  the  plaza  was  the  signal  for  the  members  to  instantly  assemble, 
fully  armed. 

Thousands  of  citizens  secretly  joined  the  organization  and  their 
services  were  soon  called  into  requisition.  On  the  evening  of  the  10th 
of  June,  the  shipping  office  of  Mr.  Virgin  on  the  wharf  Avas  robbed 


488  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

of  a  small  safe  containing  a  considerable  sum  of  mone}',  tbe  thieves 
captured  and  placetl  in  the  custody  of  the  members  of  the  Vigilance 
Committee  at  their  rooms.  The  property  was  fdentified  and  the  pris- 
oners convicted  on  the  testimony  of  the  boatman  who  had  pulled  out 
with  the  prisoners  and  their  booty  into  the  bay,  where  they  were  sub- 
sequently arrested.  The  chief  of  police  now  appeared  at  the  rooms  of 
the  committee  and  demanded  admittance  and  the  custody  of  the  pris- 
oners.    His  request  was  refused. 

After  carefully  deliberating  upon  the  character  of  the  punishment 
to  be  meted  out  to  the  prisoner,  it  was  finally  determined  that,  though 
not  a  capital  offense,  the  necessitj-  existed  for  his  execution  and  that  it 
should  take  place  at  once  to  prevent  a  rescue  by  the  friends  of  the  cul- 
prit or  an  armed  interference  on  the  part  of  the  civil  authorities.  He 
was  accordingly  notified  of  his  doom  and  given  one  hour  to  prepare 
for  death.  Shortly  after  midnight  the  condemned  man  was  taken 
under  a  strong  guard  to  Portsmouth  Square  and  hanged  to  the  cross 
beams  of  the  gable  end  of  an  old  adobe  building  which  had  been  used 
in  former  times  as  a  postoffice  but  was  then  unoccupied. 

A  coroner's  jury  of  inquest  on  the  following  day  returned  the 
following  verdict : 

"  John  Jenkins,  alids  Simpkins,  came  to  his  death  by  being  sus- 
pended by  the  neck  with  a  rope  attached  to  the  end  of  the  adobe 
building  on  the  plaza^  at  the  hands  of  an  association  of  citizens,  styl- 
ing themselves  a  Committee  of  Vigilance,  of  whom  the  following  mem- 
bers are  implicated." 

Then  followed  the  names  of  the  citizens  who  had  been  most  con- 
spicuous on  the  occasion.  "WTien  this  verdict  and  names  were  published 
on  the  day  followmg,  the  Vigilance  Committee  orderetl  the  names  of 
all  its  members  published  likewise. 

The  committee,  however,  was  strongly  opposed  by  the  civil 
authorities  and  the  legal  fraternity  generally,  and  Judge  Campbell,  of 
the  Court  of  Sessions,  holding  his  assizes  on  the  days  appointed, 
charged  his  grand  jury,  "  that  all  those  concerned  in  the  illegal  execu- 
tion had  been  guilty  of  murder,  or  v^eve  paHiceps  criminis.''^  The 
Governor  of  the  State,  McDougall,  issued  a  proclamation  addressed  to 
the  people  at  large,  in  which  he  referred  to  the  action  of  the  people  as 
"the  despotic  control  of  a  self -constituted  association  unknown  to  and 
acting  in  defiance  of  the  laws  in  the  place  of  the  regularly  organized 
government  of  the  country." 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    M0L'XTAI2sS.  .  489 

In  the  month  of  August  the  committee  tried  two  men  named 
Samuel  Whittaker  and  Robert  McKenzie.  They  were  proven  guilty 
of  very  serious  offenses,  burglary,  robbery  and  incendiarism.  It  was 
understood  that  they  were  to  be  executed  on  the  21st  of  that  month. 
A  writ  was  issued  by  Judge  Norton,  of  the  Superior  Court,  command- 
ing the  sheriff  to  bring  the  prisoners  before  his  court  at  a  certain  hour, 
to  be  dealt  with  according  to  law.  That  night  the  sheriff  and  one 
deputy  gained  admission  in  some  way  to  the  rooms  of  the  committee 
where  the  prisoners  were  confined,  led  them  down-stairs  and  placed 
them  in  charge  of  police  officers  awaiting  him  below.  No  immediate 
steps  were  taken  by  the  committee  to  remedy  this  interference  with 
their  purposes,  but  on  the  following  Sunday,  shortly  after  2  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  a  carriage  turned  into  Broad w^ay  from  Dupont  street, 
and  halted  a  short  distance  from  the  jail.  It  w^as  at  this  hour  that  the 
prisoners  were  brought  from  their  cells  to  hear  divine  service  from 
the  chaplain  of  the  prison.  A  preconcerted  rush  was  made  from  the 
outside,  the  prisoners  captured  and  carried  off  to  the  rooms  of  the  com- 
mittee. The  fire  bell  tolled  the  signal  for  the  assembly  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  committee,  and  along  with  them  poured  a  stream  of  15,000 
people  before  their  rooms  wild  with  excitement,  and  yelling  their 
approbation  of  their  action  in  again  obtaining  control  of  their  pris- 
oners. Brought  face  to  face  with  thecivil  authority  they  would  stand 
or  fall  by  that  act.  The  prisoners  were  sentenced  to  immediate  execu- 
tion, and  hanged  at  once  from  the  windows  of  the  rooms  of  the  com- 
mittee, in  the  presence  of  and  by  the  approbation  of  the  assembled 
multitude.  Only  seventeen  minutes  elapsed  between  the  recapture  of 
the  prisoners  and  their  execution  by  order  of  the  committee.  Public 
opinion  and  the  press  declared  that  the  Vigilance  Committee  had 
redeemed  their  honor. 

Having  thus  established  their  authority  and  vindicated  their 
cause  they  arose  to  the  full  height  of  their  power,  and  struck  terror 
among  criminals  of  every  degree.  Henceforth  there  was  no  more  need  of 
their  services.  Crime  fled  before  their  power  of  suppression,  and  they 
now  left  the  execution  of  the  laws  in  the  hands  of  the  civil  authorities  ; 
retaining,  however,  their  unaltered  organization,  and  imparting  to  the 
officer  as  well  as  the. criminal  within  his  hands  the  knowledge  that,  at 
any  moment  when  necessary,  the  committee  would  again  ring  the 
alarm  upon  its  fire  bell,  and   protect  and   preserve   that   social  order 


490 


ECHOES   FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


which,  by  their  vigilant  acts,  they  had  rescued  from  a  chaos  of  crime 
and  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  civil  authorities. 

As  far  as  known,  but  one  woman  died  at  the  hands  of  the  Yioi- 
lantes  of  California.  She  was  a  Spanish  woman  of  remarkable 
beauty,  who  dealt  the  game  of  Monte  in  the  early  days  of  Downie- 
ville.  Clothed  in  her  gay  attire,  her  dark  lustrous  eyes  flashing  with 
the  excitment  of  the  game,  and  a  profusion  of  dark  locks  falling  ujDon 


-^^' 


VIGILANTES  HANGING  A  DESPERADO  IN  SAN  FRANCISCO. 

her  shoulders,  together  with  a  voluptuous  form  and  superb  carriage, 
made  her  the  object  of  much  attention  from  the  rough  minei*s  and 
others  who  gathered  around  the  table  and  sat  beneath  her  spell  at  the 
fascinating  game  of  Monte.  Many,  indeed,  were  her  admirers  who 
offered  large  sums  for  her  favors,  but  apparently  she  remained  true  to 
one  who  had  assumed  the  role  of  protector. 

Among  the  miners  was  a  young  man  of  fine  physical  appearance 
who  had  come  from  Kentucky  to  the  distant  El  Dorado  to  seek  his 


ECHOES   FKOM   THE   EOCKY   MOUNTAINS.  491 

fortunes  among  its  gold  hills.  Of  a  most  genial  disposition,  warm  and 
generous  in  his  nature,  and  ever  ready  to  do  a  good  turn  for  his  neigh- 
bor or  perform  some  deed  of  charity  and  kindness  to  the  suffering, 
and  withal  as  hard  a  toiler  as  the  rest,  he  became  a  universal  favorite, 
and  all  the  rough  miners  were  his  friends,  looking  upon  him  as  the 
boy  and  pet  of  the  camp.  They  seemed  to  possess  for  the  fair-haired 
youth  the  tender  affection  usually  bestowed  upon  the  gentler  sex,  and 
each  rude  toiler  on  the  bar  or  among  the  rocks,  loved  the  sunny-faced 
youth  as  if  he  was  his  own,  and  stood  ever  ready  to  aid  and  protect 
him  in  the  rough  life  and  lot  he  had  chosen  among  them. 

Of  course  the  sole  places  of  amusement  in  those  early  days  of 
Downieville  were  within  the  garish  lights  of  the  saloon  and  by  the  side 
of  the  Monte  tables,  over  one  of  «which  the  Spanish  beauty  presided. 
Like  all  others  of  his  sex  he  was  charmed  by  her  fascinations,  but  it  was 
not  known  that  he  had  ever  made  any  advances  to  her.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  was  claimed  by  his  intimate  friends  and  associates  that  he 
never  did.  Still  it  was  not  denied  that  he  had  often  expressed  his 
admiration  for  her  many  charms  which,  indeed,  was  not  to  be  won- 
dered at  when  handsome  women  were  rarely  to  be  seen  in  the  rude 
life  of  the  miners.  Be  that  as  it  may,  true  it  is  that  one  ,night  in 
company  with  some  companions  on  his  way  home  to  his  tent,  after 
the  game  had  closed  and  the  Seiiorita  Dolores  had  retired,  passed  the 
tent  of  the  fair  Spaniard,  and  while  peeping  for  an  instant  through  the 
canvas  lappel  of  her  abode,  was  suddenly,  in  a  playful  freak,  pushed 
by  his  companions  through  the  dqor  into  the  darkness  of  her  tent  and 
fell  prostrate  upon  its  floor.  Without  a  moment's  hesitation  or  an  in- 
quiry as  to  the 'identity  of  the  intruder  she  sprang  upon  him  like  a 
tigress  in  its  lair  and  plunged  her  dagger  into  his  prostrate  form  again 
and  again  until  he  lay  a  bleeding  corpse  at  her  feet.  Information  of 
the  bloody  deed  soon  reached  every  miner  in  the  camp,  and  one  and 
all  hurried  to  the  spot  where  lay  the  victim  of  her  mad  fury.  The 
sight  of  his  fair  young  face  and  sunny  hair  clotted  with  his  life  blood, 
and  the  innumerable  ghastly  wounds  upon  his  body  as  it  lay  uncovered 
in  the  hands  of  the  doctor,  who  hoped  to  find  some  spark  of  life  re- 
maining, so  worked  upon  the  sympathies  of  the  miners  that  some 
cheeks,  long  unused  to  tears,  were  wet  with  weeping.  The  young 
life  had  gone  out  forever  and  the  bright  sunny  eyes  of  the  boy-favorite 
of  the  camp  were  closed  in  the  unawakening  slumber  of  death.     The 


492  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

rage  of  his  rough  friends  knew  no  bounds.  The  woman  was  instantly 
seized  and  placed  in  the  custody  of  guards  while  the  Vigilance  Com- 
mittee should  determine  her  fate.  That  decree  was  deatii  bv  hansms 
and  the  murderess,  with  her  hands  3'et  reeking  with  the  blood  of  her 
victim,  was  taken  to  the  upper  bridge  of  the  Yuba  and  there  hmig 
until  life  was  extinct.  Such  was  the  swift  punishment  thus  meted  out 
by  the  rude  populace  in  the  excitement  of  the  hour. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  presumed  that  efforts  were  not  made  to 
save  her  from  such  a  fate.  On  the  contrar\'^,  the  strongest  appeals 
were  made  in  her  behalf  by  many  who  deemed  the  punishment  too 
severe.  To  their  chivalrous  minds  it  was  an  equal  crime  to  hang  the 
woman.  Besides  they  credited  the  woman's  declaration  that  she  was 
entirely  ignorant  of  the  identity  of  the  person  who  had  thus  uncere- 
raoniouslv  invaded  her  abode,  and. was  so  thorougrhlv  frio^htened  at  his 
sudden  entrance  as  to  be  bereft  of  her  wits,  and  that  the  deed  of  blood 
Avas  unconsciously  performed  on  her  part.  Some  declared  the  act  to 
be  justifiable  on  the  ground  of  self-defense.  One  of  her  warmest 
defenders  was  a  physician,  who  declared  publicly  that  the  act  of  the 
Vigilantes  was  nothing  short  of  murder  and  brutal  in  the  extreme,  as  at 
the  time  of  her  execution  the  woman  was  in  a  pregnant  condition. 
These  remarks  and  others  were  so  obnoxious  to  the  Vigilantes  that 
they  prepared  to  visit  punishment  upon  the  doctor  for  thus  defying 
their  authority,  but  he  escaped  by  flight  and  thus  saved  his  life  and  the. 
executioner  another  job. 


CHAPTER    XXXIT. 

THE  VIGILANTES  07  MONTANA— THRILLING  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  ACTS  OF 
VIOLENCE  ON  THE  PART  OF  "ROAD  AGENTS,"  OR  ROBBERS  THAT  LED  TO  THE 
FORMATION  OF  THE  COMMITTEE-TIIE  EXECUTIONS  ORDERED  BY  ITS  DE- 
CREES. 

Far  to  the  northwest  among  the  canons  and  gorges  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains  and  near  the  head  waters  of  the  Missouri,  running  up  to  the 
British  line  and  forming  a  part  of  the  territorial  boundaries  of  the 
United  States,  is  the  young  Territory  of  Montana,  formerly  a  part  of 
Idaho,  but  now  a  thriving,  prosperous  community  of  itself,  tra^versed 
by  railroads,  filled  with  farms  and  gardens,  workshops,  factories, 
princely  stores,  inhabited  by  a  brave,  intelligent,  self-reliant  race, 
embracing  all  trades  and  professions  in  life,  and  almost  ready  in 
growth  and  population  to  take  its  place  as  an  integral  part  of  the 
Union  as  one  of  the  sisterhood  of  States.* 

It  was,  however,  not  always  thus.  It  was  once  but  "the  first  low 
wash  of  the  waves  where  now  rolls  a  human  sea."  A  city  of  mountain 
walls,  of  rude  civilization,  of  tented  homes,  wild  debauchery,  robbery, 
rapine  and  mid-day  murder. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1802  the  rumor  of  rich  discoveries  on 
Salmon  river  flew  through  Salt  Lake  City,  Colorado,  and  many  other 
places  in  the  far  West.  A  wild  rush  to  the  "new  diggings"  w^as  the 
result  and  a  stream  of  human  beings  set  in  for  the  new  El  Dorado,  by 
the  toilsome  way  of  Fort  Hall  and  the  Snake  River.  As  their  trains 
drew  nearer  the  long-sought  spot,  they  found  further  conveyance  by 
wagons  impossible  as  the  rocky,  mountainous  roads  were  impassible 
for  wagons.  They  were  likewise  informed  that  the  mines  were  alreadv 
overrun  by  a  vast  army  of  gold  hunters  from  .California,  Oregon  and 
all  places  on  the  Pacific  Slope.  They  also  learned  that  many  of  them 
who  had  been  driven  by  adverse  circumstances  from  Salmon  River  had 
spread  far  over  the  adjacent  country  and  that  new  discoveries  had  been 
made  at  Deer  Lodge. 

The  stream  of  emigration  now  diverged  toward  that  point,  crossed 
the  mountains  between  Fort  Lemhi  and  Horse  Prairie    Creek,   and 

*  Since  admitted  by  act  of  Congress.  ,„„ 


494  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIKS. 

taking  a  cut-oflf  to  the  left  sought  to  strike  the  old  trail  from  Salt  Lake 
to  Bitter  Root  and  Deer  Lodge  Yallevs.  A  mining  camp  was  also 
established  with  success  on  Grasshopper  Creek,  afterward  called  Bearer 
Head  Diggings.  They  were  the  first  to  work  the  gulches  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains. 

From  these  incipient  labors  flowed  the  great  raining  industries 
which  in  an  incredibly  short  space  of  time  gave  to  Montana  her  well- 
deserved  reputation  as  the  richest  gold  mining  field  discovered  since 
that  of  Cahfornia.  A  tide  of  emigration  now  poured  in  from  all 
directions,  and  with  it  came  the  bad  as  well  as  the  good,  among  them 
the  desperadoes  Henry  Plummer,  Charles  Reeves,  Moore  and  Skinner, 
all  of  whom  suffered  death  at  the  hands  of  the  honest  men  of  the  Ter- 
ritory, who,  when  they  found  they  could  not  apply  the  forms  of  law 
in  a  Community  where  the  written  law  tvas  a  dead  letter  or  had  never 
existed,  maintained  the  right  with  their  own  strong  hands  to  subdue 
the  brute  force  of  violence  and  murder. 

The  wonderful  discoveries  at  Alder  Gulch  of  the  almost  fabulous 
wealth  of  placer  diggings  attracted  a  vast  tide  of  rapid  emigration — 
that  which  is  known  among  gold-seekers  as  a  "  stampede."  It  likewise 
attracted  a  large  number  of  the  dangerous  class,  who  saw  a  broad  and 
rich  field  for  their  lawless  operations. 

With  acute  skill  they  quickly  organized  themselves  into  a  secret 
compact  body,  with  signs,  grips  and  with  a  captain,  lieutenants,  secre- 
tary, road-agents  and  out-riders,  who  became  the  terror  of  the  whole 
country.  A  corresiwndence  was  inaugurated  between  Bannock  and 
Virginia  City,  and  a  surveillance  placed  on  all  travel  between  these 
points.  To  such  a  fine  point  was  their  system  carried  that  horses, 
men  and  coaches  were  in  some  intelligible  manner  marked  to  designate 
them  as  objects  of  plunder.  In  this  manner  were  the  members  of  the 
gang  notified  by  their  spies,  ofttimes  employed  by  the  very  objects  of 
their  plunder  in  times  to  prevent  the  escape  of  their  victims. 

They  were  armed  with  a  pair  of  revolvers,  a  double-barreled  shot- 
gun with  large  bore,  the  barrels  cut  short  off,  and  a  dagger  or  bowie 
knife.  Thus  armed  and  mounted  on  swift  and  trained  hoi*ses  and  dis- 
guised with  masks  and  blankets  they  awaited  their  victims  in  ambush, 
from  which,  on  approach  of  a  conveyance,  they  would  spring  forth 
and,  covering  the  inmates  with  their  guns,  command  them  to  alight 
and  throw  up  their  hands.    If  this  order  was  not   instantly  obeyed. 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    KOCKY    MOTTNTAINS. 


495 


the  result  would  be  their  murder.  Otherwise  they  would  be  disarmed 
and  made  to  throw  their  wealth  upon  the  ground.  Concluding  their 
operations  with  a  search  for  concealed  property,  they  would  permit  the 
despoiled  passengers,  to  proceed  on  their  way  while  they  themselves 
would  ride  rapidly  in  an  opposite  direction. 

Wherever  a  new  set- 
tlement was  effected  or 
new  discoveries  of  the 
precious  metals  made, 
there  followed  the  band- 
its, until  theiroperatioAS 
spread  in  all  directions. 
They  became  the 
scourge  of  the  moun- 
tains,  and  no  manor 
class  of  men  were  safe 
from  their  attacks. 
Robbery  was  of  daily,  al- 
most hourly  occurrence, 
and  murder  followed  in 
rapid  succession. 

To  i  1 1  u strate  the 
class  of  desperadoes  en- 
gaged in  this  nefarious 
work,  we  will  take  the 
case  of  Henry  Plummer, 
a  man  of  such  smooth 
manners  and  insinuat- 
ing address  that  he  was 
termed  "  a  perfect  gen- 
tleman," although  known  to  be  both  thief  and  assassin,  and  had  once 
filled  the  office  of  Marshal  of  Nevada  City,  from  whence  he  fled  to 
Oregon,  and  thence  to  Montana.  He  emigrated  to  California  in  1852, 
drifted  with  the  excitement  to  Nevada,  and,  while  sheriff,  murdered  a 
German  in  cold  blood,  whose  wife  he  had  first  seduced.  Sent  to  prison 
for  this  crime,  but  finally  released  by  pardon,  he  again  returned  to 
Nevada  City,  killed  another  man,  was  again  consigned  to  jail,  but 
through  the  connivance  of  his  jailer,  succeeded  in  escaping,  and  started 


MASKED    HIGHWAYMAN. 


496  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIlfS. 

for  Oregon  in  company  with  a  companion  who  had  just  outlawed  him- 
self by  plunging  his  knife  into  the  heart  of4he  sheriff  of  the  county. 
On  the  road  he  distinguished  himself  by  stealing  a  hoi"se  and  murder- 
ing another  man,  and  finally  found  his  way  to  Montana,  and  was 
elected  sheriff  of  Beaver  Count}'. 

Plummer  found  his  way  to  Bannock  City,  formerly  Grasshopper 
Creek,  in  company  with  a  man  of  the  name  of  Jack  Cleveland.  In 
the  winter  of  1862-63  the  fame  of  Bannock  spread  widely.  It  was  the 
first  camp  of  imjwrtance  established  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
Divide,  and  a  large  emigration  ensued,  with  the  customary  number  of 
the  ruflBan  class.  But  among  them  all  Plummer  was  chief,  noted  for  his 
desperation  and  his  sldll  in  the  rapid  handling  of  his  pistoL  His  friend 
and  old  acquaintance,  Jack  Cleveland,  who  had  killed  a  man  on  his 
way  into  the  territory,  was  disposed  to  dispute  his  title  as  chief,  and 
frequently  boasted  of  his  own  skill  and  doings.  In  fact,  he  put  on  the 
airs  of  a  "  chief  "  in  the  rough  element  of  the  new  settlement,  and  for 
this  Plummer  shot  him  dead  one  day  while  he  was  drunk  and  boasting 
in  a  saloon. 

Shortly  after  that  occurrence  George  Ives  was  conversing  on  the 
street  with  his  friend,  George  Carhart,  and  not  liking  the  style  of  his 
speech  laid  him  prostrate  with  a  bullet  from  his  pistol. 

Haze  Lyon,  afterward  an  eminent  "  road  agent,"  owed  $400  to  a 
citizen  of  Bannock  for  board  and  lodgings.  One  morning,  after  hav- 
ing won  a  large  sum  of  money  at  a  gambling  table  the  night  previous 
he  was  asked  to  settle  his  account.  He  answered  by  drawing  his 
revolver  and  ordering  the  citizen  to  "  dust  out,"  with  which  gentle 
request  he  immediately  complied. 

Plummer  was  tried  for  the  murder  of  Cleveland,  and  acquitted  on 
the  ground  that  his  opponent's  language  was  irritating.  Charles  Reeve 
and  WiUiams  who  had  fired  into  a  camp  of  friendly  Indians,  just  to 
see  how  many  they  could  kill  at  a  single  shot,  were  also  tried  and 
acquitted  of  willful  murder.  Others  who  had  likewise  been  guilty 
of  heinous  offenses  were  also  acquitted,  and  the  baser  elements  of 
society  felt  themselves  secure  in  the  performance  of  their  lawless 
deeds,  and  murder  and  robbery  went  on  unmolested. 

Plummer,  who  had  been  chosen  chief  of  the  "  Road  Agents " 
Band,  had  likewise  succeeded  in  having  himself  elected  sheriff  of  the 
county  and  appointed  two  of  the  "  band  "  his  deputies.     And  all  this 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


4^7 


in  spite  of  his  well-known  character.  In  the  meantime  an  honest  man 
had  been  elected  sherijff  at  Virginia,  and  was  informed  by  Plummer 
that  he  "  would  live  much  lon^jer  if  he  resigned  his  office  in  his  favor." 
Fear  of  assassination  compelled  him  to  do  as  bidden,  and  Plummer 
became  sheriff  at  both  places;  with  his  robber  deputies  to  execute  the 
law,  the  people  of  Montana  were  at  the  mercy  of  the  thieves  and 
bandits.  One  of  the  sheriff's  deputies  was  an  honest  man,  and 
becoming  too  well  versed  in  the  doings  of  Plummer  and  associates  was 
sentenced  to  death  by  the  road  agents,  and  publicly  shot  by  three  of 
the  band. 

There  was  no  longer  any  security  of  life  or  property.  Men  dared 
not  go  outside  of  Virginia  after  dark,  nor  risk  their  lives  by  informing 
upon  those  who  had  robbed  or  wounded  them  on  the  highway.  Inhu- 
man murders  occurred  each  day ;  and  compassionate  citizens  were  afraid 
even  to  lift  the  hand  of  a  dying  man  found  lying  in  the  street,  mur- 
dered by  the  desperadoes,  lest  he  should  whisper  the  name  of  his 
murderer,  and  he  himself  be  marked  henceforth  for  the  assassin's 
bullet. 

A  man  sentenced  to  be  whipped  for  larceny,  to  escape  the  sting 
of  the  lash  offered  to  inform  upon  the  road  agents  He  was  met  soon 
after  by  one  of  their  number,  George  Ives,  in  open  daylight  on  a 
public  road  within  sight  of  two  houses  and  four  passing  teams,  and 
shot  to  death,  and  his  horse  carried  off  to  the  mountains.  A  Dutch- 
man had  sold  some  mules,  and  having  received  in  advance  the  money 
went  to  the  ranch  to  obtain  them  and  take  them  to  their  purchasers, 
and  while  returning  was  met  by  Ives  and  murdered  aiid  robbed  of  both 
money  and  mules. 

The  sight  of  this  man's  body,  brought  into  town  in  a  cart,  stirred 
the  blood  of  the  honest  men  of  the  community,  and  they  determined 
to  capture  and  hang  his  murderer.  A  party  of  citizens  thoroughly 
armed  scoured  the  country,  surprised  accomplices  of  the  murderer, 
and  obtained  from  them  the  unwilling  confession  that  George  Ives  was 
the  murderer.  By  the  following  evening  he  was  captured  and  taken 
a  prisoner  into  Nevada  City.  He  was  given  a  trial.  The  bench  was  a 
wagon;  the  jury  twenty -four  honest  men;  the  aroused  citizens  stood 
guard  with  guns  in  hand  while  the  trial  proceeded,  with  their  eyes 
fixed  upon  the  desperadoes  Avho  had  gathered  in  force  to  aid,  support, 
and  if  possible  to  rescue  their  comrade  in  crime.     Counsel  was  heard 


498  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUSTAlIfS. 

on  both  sides,  reliable  witnesses  proved  the  prisoner  guilty  of  numerons 
murders  and  robberies.  Condemned  to  death,  his  captors  repressed 
every  attempt  at  rescue,  and  held  the  prisoner  with  cocked  and  levelled 
guns.  It  was  a  moonlight  night  and  the  camp  fire  shed  its  glare  on 
all  around.  Amid  the  shouts  and  yells  and  murderous  threats  of  the 
assembled  ruflSans  the  condemned  assassin  and  cowardly  murderer  was 
led  to  a  gallows  upon  which  he  expiated  his  manifold  crimes. 

The  next  day  the  far-famed  Vigilantes  of  Montana  were  organ- 
ized. Five  brave  men  in  Xevada  City,  an  adjacent  mining  town  and, 
one  in  Virginia  City,  formed  the  secret  league  who  opposed  on  the  side 
of  law  and  order,  force  to  force  and  dread  to  dread,  against  the  road 
agents'  organization.  Their  work  was  sure ;  their  retribution  swift  ; 
their  power  prodigious.  The  Vigilance  Committee  became  as 
terrible  to  the  outlaws  as  they  themselves  had  formerly  been  to  the 
honest,  order-loving  and  industrious  part  of  the  community. 

Plummer,  the  sheriff,  was  seized,  and  before,  he  could  escape  was 
executed  on  a  Sunday  evening,  together  with  two  of  his  robber  depu- 
ties, on  a  gallows  which  he  himself  had  erected. 

The  Vigilantes,  to  put  an  end  to  the  long  reign  of  terror,  assumed 
the  duties  of  captors,  judges,  jurors,  and  executioners.  But  they  were 
not  guilty  of  excesses.  The}'^  sought  alone  to  strike  terror  to  those  who 
had  defied  the  weak  arm  of  the  law  by  sure,  swift  and  secret  punish- 
ment of  crime.  In  no  case,  however,  was  a  criminal  executed  without 
evidence  establishing  his  guilt.  How  closely  they  hewed  to  the  line  in 
this  respect  is  attested  by  the  dying  remarks  of  one  of  the  last  men  hanged 
b\"  their  order,  who  exclaimed  :  "  You  have  done  right.  Xot  an  inno- 
cent man  hanged  yet ! "  But  it  was  understood  that  the  work  they 
had  undertaken  to  perform  should  be  faithfully  and  thoroughly  done; 
that  there  should  be  no  half-way  measures,  no  reprieves,  the  verdict 
having:  once  been  rendered.  The  thieves  came  to  know  and  understand 
this  in  time,  and  found  Othello-like,  their  occupation  lost,  together 
with  their  lives.  Many  of  th^e  hardened  desperadoes  died  as  tliey 
had  lived,  without  fear  or  remorse.  One,  awaiting  his  turn  on  the 
gallows,  at  an  execution  of  three,  viewing  the  quivering  botly  of  his 
comrade,  cried  out  m  aloud  voice:  "Kick  away,  old  fellow,  I'll  be  in 
hell  with  you  in  a  minute ! ''  Another,  whQe  in  the  convulsions  of  a 
death  struggle,  jierformed  all  the  movements  of  a  personal  engage- 
ment, drawing  his  revolver  from  his   belt,  cocking  it  and  firing  off 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  499 

the  six  barrels  at  an  imaginary  foe,  wiose  presence  disturbed  the 
equanimity  of  his  fleeting  moments.  The  living  passion  was  strong 
in  death ! 

Another,  Avhose  pseudonj'^m  was  "Red,"  before  his  execution 
affirmed  the  justice  of  the  acts  of  the  Yigilance  Committee  and  dis- 
closed the  names  and  guilt  of  a  large  number  of  his  companions  in 
crime.  LikcAvise  the  mysteries  of  the  road  agents,  their  particular  way 
of  shaving,  a  particular  tie  to  their  necks  and  their  password  which 
was  the  euphonious  terra  of  "Innocence." 

As  an  instance  of  the  severe  labor,  exposure  and  real  hardship 
encountered  by  these  guardians  of  peace  and  order,  we  will  take  a 
single  pursuit  and  capture  as  an  example  —  that  of  the  man  William 
Hunter,  whose  tremulous  motions  and  dying  movements  partook  of 
the  dark  passions  of  his  life  of  crime. 

At  the  time  of  the  execution  of  Boone  Helm  and  his  five  confed- 
erates, Hunter  managed  to  elude  his  pursuers  by  hiding  by  day  among 
the  rocks  and  brush,  seeking  food  by  night  among  the  scattered  settle- 
ments along  the  Gallatin  River. 

Four  of  the  Yigilantes,  determined  and  resolute  men,  volunteered 
to  arrest  him.  They  crossed  the  Divide  and  forded  the  Madison  when 
huge  cakes  of  floating  ice  swirled  down  on  the  flanks  of  their  horses, 
threatening  to  carry  them  down.  Their  camping  ground  was  the 
frozen  earth  and  the  weather  intensely  cold,  and  they  slept  under  their 
blankets  by  the  fire  they  built.  One  sleeping  on  a  hillock,  with  his 
feet  to  the  fire,  slid  into  it  and  was  startled  out  of  his  sleep.  ITextday 
their  way  led  through  a  tremendous  snowstorm,  which,  however,  they 
welcomed  as  an  ally.  About  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  they  reached 
Milk  Ranch,  twenty  miles  from  their  destination,  obtained  their  supper 
and  again  proceeded  after  dark,  with  a  guide  who  was  well  acquainted 
with  the  country.  At  midnight  they  reached  the  cabin  where  they 
learned  Hunter  had  been  driven  to  seek  refuge  from  the  severe  storm 
and  cold.  They  halted,  unsaddled  and  rapped  lotidly  at  the  door.  On 
its  being  opened  by  a  man  they  said  "  Good  evening,"  and  the  reply 
camo:  "Don't  know  whether  it  is  or  not."  On  being  admitted,  they 
found  in  the  cabin  three  persons,  two  visible  and  one  covered  up  in  bed. 

The  Yigilantes  made  themslves  as  comfortable  as  possible  before 
a  blazing  fire  on  the  hearth.  They  talked  of  mining,  prospecting, 
panning-out  and  terms  of  that  character,  as  if  they  were  traveling 


500 


ECHOES    FUOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


miners  and  not  the  armed  officers  of  the  law  who  had  tracked  to  his 
lair  the  crime-stained  desperado.  Before  going  to  sleep,  however, 
they  carefully  examined  the  premises  as  to  its  lexits,  and  placed  them- 
selves in  such  a  manner  as  to  command  the  only  entrance  and  exit. 
They  refrained  from  saying  anj'^thing  concerning  their  real  business 
mitil  early  the  following  morning,  when  the  horees  were  saddled  and 
they  appeared  ready  to  proceed  on  their  journey.     Then  they  asked 


EXECUTION'  OF  HUNTER. 


who  the  sleeper  was  who  had  never  spoken  or  uncovered  his  head. 
The  reply  was  that  he  w^as  unknown ;  had  been  there  two  days,  driven 
in  b}^  the  storm.  Asked  to  describe  him,  the  description  was  that  of 
Hunter. 

The  Vigilantes  then  went  to  the  bed,  and  laying  a  firm  hand  on 
the  sleeper,  gripped  the  revolvers  held  by  him  in  his  hands  beneath 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  501 

the  bed-clothes.  "Bill  Hunter"  was  called  upon  to  arise  and  behold 
grim  men  with  guns  leveled  at  his  head.  He  asked  to  be  taken  to 
Virginia  City,  but  he  soon  found  a  shorter  road  lay  before  him.  Two 
miles  from  there  they  halted  beneath  a  tree  with  a  branch  over  which 
a  rope  could  be  thrown,  and  a  spur  to  which  the  end  could  be  fastened. 
Scraping  away  a  foot  of  snow,  they  built  a  fire  and  cooked  their  break- 
fast. After  breakfast  they  consulted  and  took  a  vote  as  to  the  dispo- 
sition of  the  prisioner.  That  vote  determined  the  execution  to  be 
instant.  The  perils  of  the  long  tramp  over  the  mountain  divide,  the 
recrossing  of  the  icy  stream,  the  small  force  involved  in  his  capture 
and  the  certainty  of  an  attempt  at  rescue  when  his  capture  became 
known  to  his  accomplices,  all  served  to  influence  his  execution  as 
speedily  as  possible.  The  long  catalogue  of  crimes  he  had  committed 
was  read  to  him  and  he  was  asked  to  plead  any  extenuating  circum- 
stances in  his  behalf.  There  were  none  and  he  remained  silent.  He^ 
had  once  been  an  honest,  hard-working  man  and  believed  to  be  an 
upright  citizen.  In  an  evil  hour  he  joined  his  fortunes  with  the  wicked 
band  who  likewise  had  perished  on  the  scaffold.  His  sole  request  was 
that  his  friends  in  the  States  should  not  be  informed  of  the  manner  of 
his  death.  Thus  died  the  last  of  Plummer's  famous  band  of  outlaws, 
executing  in  his  last  movements  the  pantomime  of  grasping  an  imagin- 
ary pistol,  cocking  it,  and  discharging  in  rapid  succession  its  six 
ghostly  barrels. 


CHAPTER    XXXV. 

THE  EXECUTION  OF  SLADE-THE  STORY  OF  HIS  LIFE  AXD  DEATH-HIS  "WTFE— A 
NEW  AXD  CORRECT  ACCOUNT  OF  HIS  EARLY  LIFE  IN  ILLIPOIS— HIS  DIFFI- 
CULTY  WITH  JULES  BENI— THE  SUBSEQUENT  KILLING  OF  BENI  BY  SLADE'S 
DIRECnON-SLADE  CONNECTED  WITH  THE  OVERLAND  EXPRE^S-HIS  RE- 
MOVAL TO  MONTANA-FREIGHTING  ON  MILK  RIVER-EARNS  LARGE  SUMS  OF 
MONEY  WHICH  IS  SPENT  IN  RIOTIOUS  DISSIPATION-HE  STAMPS  UPON  THE 
WRIT  OF  A  COURT  AND  POINTS  HIS  PISTOL  IN  THE  FACE  OF  THE  JUDGE— 
HIS  ARREST  AT  VIRGDnA  CITY,  MONTANA-HIS  EXECUTION. 

Among  all  the  executions  by  the  Vigilance  Committee  of  Montana 
none  occasioned  so  much  comment,  mingled,  on  the  part  of  many 
good-minded  citizens,  with  genuine  regret,  as  that  of  Joseph  Alfred 
Slade,  and  no  act  of  the  Vigilantes  performed  while  in  supreme  power 
met  with  such  adverse  criticism.  In  fact,  he  was  or  had  been  a 
member  of  that  organization  himself,  and  declared  himself  to  be  in 
favor  of  "good  order"  in  the  Territory.  To  the  curse  of  liquor,  how- 
ever, is  due  the  course  which  led  finally  to  his  death  at  the  hands  of 
his  former  comrades.  He  was  raised  in  Clinton  county,  Illinois,  came 
of  a  highly  respected  family,  and  bore  an  excellent  reputation  while 
residing  at  his  home.  He  was  in  no  wise  connected  with  the  gang  of 
outlaws  who  made  a  pandemonium  of  the  young  Territory  and  whose 
death  at  the  hands  of  law-abiding  citizens  was  the  just  desert  for  their 
dark  crimes  and  numerous  deeds  of  bloodshed.  The  acts  which  gave 
a  celebrit}'  to  his  name  were  performed  in  another  part  of  the  Great 
West,  chiefly  on  the  old  Overland  Mail  line,  where  for  years  he  was  a 
trusted  official.  He  was  a  man  of  good  business  qualifications  and 
possessed  the  knack  of  making  money  in  fields  where  others  failed. 
He  was  withal  an  honest,  kind-hearted,  intelligent  man,  noted  for  his 
strong  friendships  and  generous  qualities  and  the  power  of  attracting 
the  favorable  notice  of  even  strangers.  There  are  to-day  a  multitude 
of  men  in  the  far  West  possessing  a  full  knowledge  of  all  the  leading 
incidents  of  his  life,  many  of  whom  were  associated  with  him  in  busi- 
ness, who  still  speak  of  him  as  a  perfect  gentleman,  and  not  only 
deplore  his  death  but  pronounce  his  execution  as  a  murder.  To  the 
habits  of  intemperance  which  grew  with  his  years  and  excited  the 

503 


ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  503 

wild  lawlessness  that  eventually  ended  his  career  on  the  gallows  must 
be  attributed  the  remarkable  changes  which  reversed  his  nature  and 
converted  him  from  a  good,  law-abiding  citizen  to  an  outlaw  whose 
acts  under  its  influence  were  deemed  worthy  of  death. 

Slade  was  a  division  superintendent  on  the  mail  line  running  from 
Saint  Joseph,  Mo.,  to  Salt  Lake  City;  his  division  included  that  part  of 
the  line  beginning  at  the  "Upper  Crossing"  of  the  South  Platte  Eiver 
to  Rocky  Ridge,  known  as  the  Sweetwater  division. 

Much  has  been  related  of  his  encounter  with  Jules  Beni,  and  his 
subsequent  death  at  the  hands  of  Slade,  has  been  made  the  subject  of 
much  comment  by  his  enemies.  There  have  been  numerous  versions 
of  the  affair,  but  my  source  of  information  leaves  no  room  for  doubt 
as  to  its  correctness. 

Jules  Beni  was  a  Frenchman  who  kept  the  station  at  the  "  Upper 
Crossing,"  and  from  whom  the  town  of  Julesburg  derived  its  name. 
He  was  known  and  feared  for  his  lawless  character,  and  his  high-handed 
acts  in  dealing  with  the  stock  of  the  line  and  constant  feuds  arising 
therefrom,  first  induced  the  company  in  1858  to  appoint  Slade  to  the 
agency  of  that  particular  division.  Jules  would  not  willingly  submit 
to  the  authority  of  the  new  agent,  nor  in  fact  to  any  one  whom  he 
could  intimidate.  But  Slade  being  a  man  of  most  determined  will, 
would  not  brook  the  interference  of  Jules,  and  finally  the  mutual  dis- 
like led  to  an  open  rupture.  Jules  had  discharged  a  man  and 
Slade  re-employed  him.  Jules  had  "sequestrated"  some  of  the 
stock  and  Slade  had  recovered  it  for  the  company.  This  brought  mat- 
ters to  a  crisis.  This  difference,  however,  was  smoothed  over  and  the 
."affair"  was  presumed  by  all  to  be  amicably  adjusted.  It  appears, 
however,  that  the  matter  still  rankled  in  the  Frenchman's  heart  and 
he  was  only  waiting  for  a  favorable  opportunity  to  kill  his  adversary. 

One  day  early  in  the  spring  of  1859,  Slade  chanced  to  be  at  Upper 
Crossing  and  he,  some  of  the  stage  boys  and  Jules  were  all  in  the  cor- 
ral, engaged  in  conversation.  Jules  was  the  first  to  withdraw  and 
enter  the  house.  He  was  followed  soon  after  by  Slade,  who  remarked  : 
"  I  will  go  in  and  get  something  to  eat."  There  were  two  houses,  one 
an  adobe  where  Jules  lived — the  other  a  frame  structure  in  which  the 
stage  boys  were  served  their  meals.  As  Slatle  was  about  to  enter  the 
frame  building,  the  remaining  boys  saw  Jules  emerge  from  the  adobe 
with  a  pistol  in  his  hand  and  one  of  them  cried  out  to  Slade  :     "  Look 


504  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

out,  he's  going  to  shoot !  As  Slade,  who  was  unarmed  (and  this  fact 
had  probably  been  perceived  by  Jules)  turned  suddenly  about,  he 
received  three  shots  from  Jules'  revolver.  lie  did  not  fall,  however, 
and  seeking  to  finish  the  bloody  work,  Jules  reached  within  the  open 
door  for  a  double-barreled  shot-gun  and  fired  the  contents  of  both 
ban-els  into  Slade's  bod}-.  He  fell  to  the  earth,  and  Jules  supposing  he 
had  killed  him,  informed  the  bovs  thev  could  burv  him  in  a  newcroods 
box  he  had  a  short  time  before  received.  Slade  hearing  the 
remark  raised  himself  up  slightly,  and  replied  that  it  was  unnecessary 
to  make  such  preparations  as  he  did  not  intend  to  die,  but  would  live 
to  avenge  the  cowardly  attack  of  Jules.  He  was  thereupon  taken  into 
the  house,  received  prompt  attention  and  in  a  few  weeks  was  enabled  to 
be  removed  to  his  old  home  at  Carlisle,  Illinois,  where  he  rapidly 
recoveretl  and  in  due  time  returned  to  his  duties  on  the  stage  line. 

After  realizing  the  situation  and  (Uscussing  the  cowardice  of  the 
attack  and  lack  of  provocation,  the  stage  boys  decided  to  be  execu- 
tioners themselves,  and  stringing  a  pole  across  two  large  freight 
wagons,  hung  Jules  Beni  to  the  beam.  At  this  instant  Ben  Fickiin, 
the  general  superintendent  of  the  whole  line,  arrived  and  cut  him 
down  before  life  was  extinct.  After  his  revival  and  it  was  found  that 
Slade  would  recover,  he  was  offered  his  freedom  on  condition  that  he 
would  leiive  the  country.  Jules  gladly  accepted  the  terms  and  quickly 
departed  for  Denver. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  at  that  period  there  was  no  legal 
tribunal  near  at  hand,  before  which  he  could  be  tried  and  punished  for 
his  offense.  In  fact  there  was  no  "  law  "  from  the  Missouri  River  to 
California,  save  the  Miner's  Courts  at  Denver  and  in  Xevada  and  the 
Mormon  tribunal  at  Salt  Lake  Cit3\  Colorado  was  not  then  a  Ter- 
ritory there  was  a  kind  of  provisional  government,  and  the  Territorial 
name  presented  was  that  of  Jefferson,  afterward  changed  to  Colorado 
upon  the  passage  of  the  Organic  Act. 

"When  Slade  recovered  from  his  severe  wounds  and  returned  again 
to  his  field  of  labor  he  was  disposed  to  avoid  his  assailant  and  went  so 
far  as  to  send  word  to  Jules  that  he  would  never  "  hurt,"  him,  but  warned 
him  at  the  same  time  never  to  come  into  his  immediate  neighborhood. 
They  were  now  a  long  way  apart  and  Jules  would  have  to  come  all 
the  way  from  Denver  to  what  is  now  Julesburg  to  reach  the  vicinity 
of  Slade's  labors.  Xeverthless  he  did  come,  and,  as  a  matter  of 
coarse,  met  his  death  at  the  hands  of  Slade. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  505 

Two  years  afterward,  in  August,  1861,  Slade  was  proceeding 
over  his  division  from  Eocky  Ridge,  Sweetwater  eastward,  and  on 
the  line  he  heard  that  Jules  was  near  by,  driving  some  stock  along  the 
regular  stage  road  he  was  obliged  to  pass  over  in  the  performance  of 
his  duties.  Blade's  family  resided  at  Horse  Shoe,  thirty  or  forty  miles 
west  of  Fort  Laramie,  and  there  he  halted  and  remained  a  whole 
week  for  the  purpose,  it  is  believed,  to  allow  Jules  to  pass  out  of  the 
country  with  his  stock.  Proceeding  again  eastward  over  his  division, 
after  the  lapse  of  a. week,  he  found,  on  reaching  Laramie,  that  Jules  had 
not  gone  out  of  the  country,  but  was  only  twelve  miles  distant.  After 
a  hasty  consultation  with  some  of  his  friends,  he  determined  to  capture 
and  kill  his  adversary,  for  he  was  cautioned  that  if  he  proceeded  on 
his  way,  Jules  would,  from  ambush,  fire  upon  and  kill  him,  and, 
perhaps,  others  in  his  attempt. 

A  plan  Avas  formed,  and  Jules  and  his  party  were  captured 
twenty  miles  east  of  Laramie,  and  Slade,  arriving  soon  after,  took  the 
matter  in  his  own  hands  and  shot  him  to  death.  Jules  offered  stern 
resistance  to  his  captors,  firing  upon  them  several  times,  and  was 
secured  after  a  running  fight,  in  w^hich  one  shot  took  effect.  After  his 
death  a  Frenchman,  by  the  name  of  Bordeau,  was  chosen  to  select 
sufficient  stock  to  reimburse  Slade  for  expenses  incurred,  while 
recovering  from  Beni's  murderous  attack  two  years  before.  The 
remainder  of  his  stock  and  the  money  on  his  person  were  disposed  of 
in  accordance  with  his  own  directions. 

In  justification  of  this  deed  of  bloodshed  on  the  part  of  Slade,  it 
was  stated  that  the  Frenchman  lingered  on  the  road  for  the  purpose 
of  a  hostile  meeting  with  Slade ;  that  he  frequently  indulged  in  such 
expressions  as  "I  have  come  for  a  topknot,  and  I  am  going  to  have  it;*' 
"not  afraid  of  any  d — d  driver,  express  rider  or  any  one  else  in  the 
mail  company,  and  that  if  Slade  did  not  kill  Beni  he  would  himself  be 
slaughtered  by  him."  The  mail  company,  which  employed  him,  and  a 
military  tribunal  at  Laramie,  the  nearest  for  1,500  miles,  to  which  he 
surrendered  after  the  shooting  of  Beni,  exonerated  him. 

It  is  alleged  by  others,  but  denied  by  his  friends  that,  after  killing 
Jules,  he  cut  off  his  ears  and  carried  them  in  his  vest  pocket  for  a  long 
time  ;  also,  that  he  prolonged  the  agony  of  his  enemy  by  shooting  him 
to  death  by  degrees. 

It  is  also  affirmed  that  on  the  line  of  his  division  he  was  cruelly 
quarrelsome,  and  on  one  occasion  killed  the  father  of  the  little  half-breed 


506  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUlfTAIKS. 

boy,  whom  he  afterward  adopted  and  who  lived  with  his  widow  after 
his  execution. 

It  was  also  alleged  that  on  another  occasion,  some  emigrants  having 
their  stock  either  lost  or  stolen,  and  Slade  being  apprised  of  it,  went 
in  company  with  one  of  them  to  a  ranch,  the  owner  of  which  he  sus- 
pected of  stealing  the  stock,  and,  o}>ening  fire  upon  them  through  the 
door,  killed  three  and  wounded  the  fourth. 

Stories  of  his  hanging  men  and  of  innumerable  assaults,  shootings 
and  beatings  in  which  he  was  alleged  to  have  been  the  principal  actor, 
form  i)art  of  the  legends  of  the  vanished  stage  lines. 

But  this  was  the  reputation  he  bore  with  him  to  Virginia  City, 
Montana,  to  which  place  he  went  in  the  spring  of  1863.  During  the 
following  summer  he  went  to  Milk  River  as  a  freighter,  where  he 
accumulated  great  gains,  but  spent  them  profusely. 

After  the  execution  of  the  five  men  on  the  14th  of  January,  the 
Vigilantes  considered  their  work  accomplished.  Having  freed  the 
Territory  of  highwaymen  and  murderers,  they  determined  in  the 
absence  of  the  regular  civil  authority  they  would  establish  a  provis- 
ional court,  where  all  offenders  might  be  tri^  by  judge  and  jury. 
Tbe  tearing  in  pieces  and  stamping  u|X)n  a  writ  of  this  court,  organ- 
ized in  the  interest  of  ]>eace  and  social  order  and  civil  authority,  and 
tbe  menace  of  its  judge  at  the  point  of  a  derringer  by  Slade,  was  the 
culminating  act  which  led  to  his  execution.  He  had  never  been 
accused  of  murder  or  even  suspected  of  robbery  in  the  Territory. 
The  latter  crime  had  never  been  imputed  to  him  anywhere.  His  law- 
less acts,  while  intoxicated,  and  his  defiance  of  the  duly  accredited 
civil  authority  led  to  the  belief  that  as  he  had  killed  men  in  other 
places  he  would,  unless  checked  in  his  wild  career,  commit  the  same 
act  in  Virginia  City. 

After  his  return  from  Milk  Kiver,  his  intemperate  habits  increased 
so  fearfully  that  his  demonstrations  were  perfectly  violent,  and  it 
became  a  common  thing  for  him  to  take  the  town  by  storm.  He  and 
his  pals  would  gallop  on  horseback  through  its  main  streets,  shooting 
and  yeUing  like  red  devils,  firing  their  revolvers,  riding  their  horses 
within  the  open  doors  of  stores,  and  engage  in  the  destruction  of  the 
goods  and  chattels  therein,  while  using  the  most  insulting  language  to 
their  inmates. 

Many  times  he  was  warned  by  his  friends  that  his  lawless  conduct 
would  end  in  certain  retribution.     He  heeded  not  their  kindly  warnings^ 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


507 


but  persisted  in  his  lawless  course  until  each  moment  the  public 
expected  some  bloody  outrage  at  his  hands.  Finally,  after  one  of  his 
all-night  carouses,  in  which  he  and  his  companions  had  made  the  town 
a  pandemonium,  he  was  arrested  by  the  sheriff  and  taken  before  the 
court  of  Judge  Alexander  Davis.  "While  the  warrant  of  his  arrest  aa\^s 
being  read  by  way  of  his  arraignement,  he  seized  the  writ  and  tore  it 
in  pieces  and  stamped  upon  it  in  mad  fury.  The  day  before  he  had 
threatened  to  murder  a  peaceable  citizen,  who  had  merely  remonstrated 
against  his  riding  his  horse  into  his  store,  and  now  he  sought  out  Judge 
Davis,  and  with  a  loaded  derringer  threatened  his  life.      This  act  of 


SLAD  :    DEFYING  THE   COURT. 


violence  sealed  his  doom.  The  Vigilance  Committee  was  called  once 
more  together,  and  after  deliberation,  passed  sentence  of  death  upon 
him.  Although  loth  to  perform  this  act,  they  were  forced  by  public 
opinion  to  execute  it.  Six  hundred  miners  marched  in  a  body  to  the 
executive  committee  and  demanded  his  execution. 

In  the  meantime  Slade  had  found  out  what  was  intended,  and  was 
instantly  sobered  by  the  information.  He  went  to  Judge  Davis  and 
made  an  humble  apology  for  his  violent  conduct.     It  was,   however, 


508  ECHOES    FltOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

too  late.  The  head  of  the  column  wheeled  into  Wallace  Street  and 
halted  in  front  of  the  store  where  he  was  in  the  act  of  apologizing  to 
Judge  Davis,  arrested  him  and  informed  him  of  his  doom.  He  now 
began  to  plead  unceasingly  for  his  life  and  to  see  his  dear  wife,  between 
whom  and  Slade  there  existed  a  warm  affection ;  for  when  sober,  he 
was  a  kind  man  and  an  affectionate  husband.  She  at  this  time  was  at 
their  ranch  on  the  Madison,  twelve  miles  distant  from  Virginia  City. 
Possessed  of  many  personal  attractions,  youthful,  bright  and  viva- 
cious, and  withal  of  most  pleasing  manners,  she  was  at  the  same  time 
of  ardent  temperament,  strong  phj^sique  and  a  most  accomplished 
horsewoman. 

A  message  from  Slade  at  full  speed  bore  to  her  the  news  of  his 
dire  periL  In  a  moment  she  was  in  the  saddle  and  urging  her  fleetest 
charger  over  the  rocky  road  to  Yirginia  City. 

In  the  meantime  preparations  were  fast  being  made  for  his  execution. 
Across  the  top  of  the  high  gate-post  of  the  corral,  beneath  the  site  of 
RusseU's  stone  buildings,  was  laid  a  beam  to  which  the  rope  was  fastened 
and  a  dry-goods  box  served  for  the  platform  of  the  gallows.  To  this 
place  Slade  was  carried,  surrounded  by  a  guard  of  a  thousand  men, 
grim  and  resolute  in  their  demeanor  and  determination.  He  was  so 
exhausted  by  his  lamentations,  tears,  appeals  and  prayers,  that  he  was 
well  nigh  unable  to  stand  beneath  the  fatal  beam  while  they  adjusted 
the  rope  about  his  neck.  He  still  begged  in  most  piteous  terms  to  see 
his  wife.  Had  that  stem  woman  reached  in  time  the  object  of  her 
passionate  devotion  she  would  have  shot  him  dead  with  her  own  hands 
ere  she  would  have  seen  him  die  a  felon's  death.  He  kept  repeatedly 
calling  her  name  and  exclaiming,  "My  God  I  "M}^  God  I  Must  I 
die  I     Oh,  my  dear  wife ! " 

All  things  being  ready,  the  command  was  given:  "Men,  do  your 
duty,"  and  the  box  being  quickly  slipped  from  beneath  his  feet,  he 
died  almost  instantaneously.  His  body  was  removed  to  the  Yirginia 
Hotel,  where  it  was  scarcely  laid  out  when  his  unfortunate  wife 
arrived,  only  to  find  him  dead  in  the  darkened  room.  With  heart- 
rending cries  she  bewailed  his  death,  and,  embracing  the  inanimate 
form,  she  bedewed  the  cold  remains  with  a  torrent  of  tears.  It  was 
long  before  her  grief  and  tears  were  assuaged,  or  that  her  lamentations 
ceased  over  her  sudden  and  extreme  bereavement. 

Such  was  the  close  of  the  career  of  Joseph  Alfred  Slade,  "  the  idol 
of  his  followers  and  the  terror  of  his  foes."     His  was  a  nature  of 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNT?AINS.  509 

stange  conti'adictions.  "With  generosity,  courteous  kindness,  firm 
friendship,  tender  affection  for  his  wife,  and  unalterable  devotion  to 
his  attachments,  he  combined  destructiveness,  violent  lawlessness,  rude- 
ness of  speech,  and  "volcanic"  outbursts  of  passion,  that  made  him  the 
scourge  of  society.  But  may  we  not  ascribe  all  the  darker  portions 
of  his  nature,  that  obscured  its  more  generous  and  beautiful  traits,  that 
otherwise  would  have  made  him  a  king  among  men,  to  the  fiery  com- 
pounds he  poured  into  his  system,  and  whose  poisonous  vapors  clouded 
his  mind,  dethroned  his  reason,  drove  him  to  madness  and  the  commis- 
sion of  those  lawless  acts  against  the  peace  of  society,  the  tenure  of 
social  order  and  the  rights  of  man,  for  which  he  atoned  upon  the  gal- 
lows? Let  the  indictment  lie  at  the  doors  of  those  who  thus  opened 
the  way  for  his  lawlessness  by  first  dethroning  his  reason.  Beyond 
the  frost  line  of  the  mountains  and  the  shore  line  of  time  that  indict- 
ment will  be  read,  and  who  shall  be  called  to  plead?  Shall  it  be 
Slade,  or  those  who  made  him  a  madman? 


CHAPTER  XXXTI 

VIGILANCE  COMMITTEES  IN  MONTANA,  CONTINTED- NAMES  AND  DATES  OF  EXE- 
CUTIONS BY  ITS  DECREES— STORY  OF  THE  SNOW-DRIFTS  ON  THE  COLUMBIA - 
THE  HEROIC  SOUL  OF  THE  ROBBER  CHIEF -JOAQUIN  ^nLLER'S  STORY  OF 
THEIR  ESCAPE  FROM  FREEZING. 

There  were  but  few  more  executions  b\'  the  Tigilance  Committee 
after  that  of  Slade.  Peace  and  order  reigned,  broken  but  seldom  by 
acts  of  violence.  TThenever  tbe\'  occurred,  retribution  swiftly  followed. 
James  Brady,  a  saloonkeeper  in  the  Lower  Town  known  as  K^evada 
City,  was  tried,  condemned  and  hung  for  the  shooting  of  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Murphy,  against  whom  he  bore  a  grudge.  Before  his  death 
he  sent  the  following  letter  to  his  daughter : 

My  Dear  Daughter  —  You  will  never  see  me  agaia.  In  an  evil  hour,  being 
under  the  control  and  influence  of  whisky,  I  tried  to  take  the  life  of  my  fellow-man. 
I  tried  to  shoot  him  through  a  window.  He  will  in  all  probability  die  and  that  at 
my  hands.  I  can  not  say  I  should  not  suffer  the  penalty  affixed  to  the  violation  of 
law.  I  have  been  arrested,  tried  and  sentenced  to  be  hanged  by  the  Vigilance 
Committee.  In  one  short  hour  I  will  have  gone  into  eternity.  By  the  love  I  feel 
for  you  in,  in  this  my  dying  hour,  I  entreat  you  to  be  a  good  grirl.  Walk  in  the 
ways  of  the  Lord.  Keep  heaven.  God  and  the  interest  of  your  soul  before  your  eyes. 
I  commend  and  commit  you  to  the  keeping  of  God.  Pray  for  my  soul.  Farewell, 
forever,  Tour  father,  James  Bkadt. 

In  July  following,  Jim  Kelly  was  hung  for  horse-stealing  at  Oliver 
Station,  on  the  line  of  the  Salt  Lake  and  Montana  stage  road.  While 
he  was  yet  on  the  trap,  some  Shoshone  Indian  warriors  came  up  and 
viewed  the  proceedings  with  evident  amazement.  When  the  plank 
was  knocked  from  under  him  and  he  swung  into  etemitA',  the  Indians 
gave  a  loud  "  Ugh  !  "  and  started  at  fuU  speed  for  their  camp.  They 
had  never  before  seen  a  man  killed  in  that  manner,  and  were  thor- 
oughly frightened.  They  evidently  feared  that  the  same  death  would 
be  meted  out  to  them. 

Late  in  the  month  of  August,  1864,  a  man  of  the  name  of  James 
Brady,  of  I^evada,  was  robbed  of  $700  in  gold  by  one  John  Dolan, 
(ili€L8  "Hard  .Hat,"  who  had  been  living  with  him  and  took  the  money 
fronbhis  trousers  pocket.  ,  He  made  his  escape  to  Salt  Lake  City,  but 
was  followed,  captured  and  brought  back  to  Xevada  City,  where  he 

510 


ECHOES   FKOM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  511 

was  executed  for  the  crime  on  the  17th  of  September,  in  the  presence 
of  6,000  spectators. 

In  the  same  month  R.  C.  Rawley  was  hung  at  Bannock  City.  He 
was  a  man  of  education,  of  fine  appearance  until  consumed  by  hquor, 
and  had  once  been  a  merchant  in  a  large  Western  city. 

The  next  execution  was  that  of  John  Kem,  alias  Bob  Block,  for 
the  murder  of  Harry  Slater,  a  professional  gambler,  at  Helena. 

After  the  capture  and  execution  of  Jake  Silire,  alias  Jacob  Sea- 
christ,  a  "  road  agent "  and  murderer  of  twelve  years'  standing,  and 
the  slayer  of  twelve  men,  all  of  which  he  openly  confessed  before  the 
rope  was  adjusted  about  his  neck,  and  he  was  swung  into  eternity  at 
Helena,  the  work  of  the  committee  drew  finally  to  a  close. 

Although  it  preserved  its  existence,  it  gradually  ceased  to  exercise 
its  functions ;  its  name  more  than  its  efforts  sufficed  to  maintain  tran- 
quility. When  Chief  Justice  Hosmer  arrived  in  the  Territory  and 
organized  the  Territorial  and  County  Courts,  he  deemed  it  important 
to  the  best  interests  of  society  that  with  the  organization  of  the  courts 
the  administration  of  justice  by  the  Yigilantes  should  cease.  He, 
therefore,  in  his  charge  to  the  grand  jury,  referred  to  that  organiza- 
tion and  invited  them  to  sustain  the  authorities  as  citizens.  This  was 
most  heartily  complied  with  by  the  now  famous  guardians  of  the 
peace,  who  rejoiced  to  be  able  to  transfer  their  assumed  duty  of  main- 
taining ])ublic  peace  and  order  into  the  hands  of  the  civil  authorities. 

The  total  number  of  executions  by  order  of  the  Vigilance  Com^ 
mittee  of  Montana  was  thirty-two,  as  follows  : 

George  Ives,  at  Nevada  City,  December  21st,  1863. 

Erastus  Vager,  alias  "Red,"  and  George  W.  Brown,  at  "  Stinking  "Water " 
Valley,  January  4th,  1864. 

Henry  Plummer,  Ned.  Ray  and  Buck  Stinson,  at  Bannock  City,  Montana, 
January  10th,  1864. 

George  Law,  Frank  Parish,  Haze  Lyons,  Jack  Gallagher,  and  Boone  Helm,  at 
Virginia  City,  Montana,  January  14th,  1864. 

Steve  Marshland,  at  Big  Hole  Ranch,  January  16th,   1864. 

William  Benton,  at  Deer  Lodge  Valley,  January  11th,  1864. 

Robert  Zachery,  Cyrus  Skinner,  Alexander  Carter  and  John  Cooper,  at  Hell 
Gate,  Montana,  January  24th,  1864. 

George  Shears,  at  French-town,  Montana,  February  26th,  1864. 

William  Graves,  at  Fort  Owens,  Montana. 

William  Hunter,  at  Gallatin  Valley,  Montana,  February  3rd,  1864. 

John  Wagoner  and  Joe  Pizanthia,  at  Bannock  City,  Montana,  January  11th,  1864. 

J.  A.  Slade,  Virginia  City,  Montana, 

James  Brady,  Virginia  City,  Montana,  1864. 

Jim  Kelly,  at  Oliver  Station,  Montana,  August  30th,  1864. 


512  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

R .  C.  Rawley,  Bannock  City,  Montana,  September,  1864. 

Jolrn  Dolan,  at  Nevada  City,  Montana,  September,  17th,  1864. 

John  Silvie  alias  Jacob  Seachrist,  Montana,  1865.      -» 

James  Daniels,  at  Helena  City,  Montana,  1865. 

John  Morgan  and  John  Jackson,  horse  thieves,  at  Virginia  City,  Montana,  1865. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing,  all  of  whom  paid  the  penalty  of  their 
crimes  with  their  lives,  nearly  one  hundred  were  banished  from  the 
Territory,  including  a  lawyer  named  Thurmond,  who  afterward  brought 
suit  against  some  of  the  Yigilantes  at  Salt  Lake  City  to  recover 
damages  for  the  arbitrary  act. 

The  institution  of  government  for  a  people  is,  that  the  governed 
may  obtain  security  of  life  and  property.  "Without  such  safeguard 
social  order  could  not  exist.  Society'  would  be  anarchy  and  the  law 
of  right  would  be  that  of  might.  In  all  governments  there  must  of 
necessity  be  both  the  law  and  the  sword,  laws  without  arms  would 
give  us  not  freedom  but  licentiousness,  and  arms  without  laws  would 
produce,  not  subjection,  but  slavery.  In  a  state  of  society  where 
neither  the  one  nor  the  other  can  be  applied  and  the  tenure  of  life  and 
property  rests  upon  the  frail  foundation  of  individual  strength  and 
prowess,  where  lawlessness  usurps  the  power  that  should  prevail  in  a 
reign  of  peace  and  order,  where  courts  of  law  do  not  exist  or,  if  exist- 
ing, are  either  powerless  to  enforce  their  decrees  or  themselves  so 
tinctured  with  the  licentiousness  of  the  times  as  to  render  the  adminis- 
tration of  justice  abortive,  what  can  be  done,  yea,  what  must  be 
done,  to  establish  order,  restrain  the  turbulent,  protect  the  weak  and 
administer  justice  in  the  interest  of  civilization  and  human  progress  ? 
There  can  be  but  one  answer.  The  community  as  a  whole  must  exert 
its  inherent  power  to  maintain  peace  and  order  essential  to  security  of 
life  and  property. 

Upon  this  ground  alone  can  be  justified  the  organization  and 
subsequent  act  of  the  vigilance  committees  of  California  and  Montana. 
Ko  one  can  deny  the  stem  necessity  that  existed  for  their  formation. 
Jfo  one  can  deny  that  with  their  advent  and  determined  action,  violence 
gave  way  to  peace,  lawlessness  to  order,  peril  to  safety,  sedition  to 
quietude,  and  murder  and  robbery  to  security  of  life  and  property. 
If  such  were  their  final  results,  and  with  the  establishment  of  peace  and 
order  came  prosperity,  happiness  in  men's  daily  pursuits,  and  the 
attendant  increase  and  growth  of  the  commonwealth  in  the  stead  of 
violence,  disorder,  distrust,  robbery,  rapine  and  assassination,  is  it  not 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  513 

the  best  argument  in  favor  of  their  formation  and  the  need  thereof  ? 
In  other  words  is  it  not  written  upon  the  foundations  of  the  commer- 
cial and  political  empires  on  the  ocean's  shore  lines,  and  on  the  granite 
rocks  and  mountain  walls  of  Montana,  that  all  their  subsequent  wealth 
and  progress  is  due  to  the  peace,  order  and  security  instituted  by  their 
vigilance  committees  ? 

That  such  was  the  state  of  societ}^  in  the  New  El  Dorados  of  Cali- 
fornia and  Montana  that  prompted  these  organizations,  no  right- 
minded  man  will  deny.  The  statement  of  the  atrocious  crimes  for 
which  they  were  condemned  and  executed  is  sufficient  evidence  of  the 
condition  of  the  society  they  had  made  by  their  lawless  acts,  as  well 
as  a  plea  of  justification  for  the  means  adopted  for  its  cure.  It  was 
the  knife  applied  by  the  physician  to  the  festering  sores  on  the  body 
politic,  in  the  heroic  treatment  imperative  for  its  return  to  healthful 
vigor. 

That  wrongs  were  committed  and  injustice  occasionally  done  by 
the  hasty  jiidgment  frequently  necessary  in  determining  the  guilt  o** 
innocence  of  the  accused,  can  not  be  denied.  For  all  of  which  only 
regret  cfln  be  affirmed.  The  Roman  maxim,  '''■Inter  arma  silent  leges'' 
springs  from  the  necessity  of  the  common  defense.  But  when  the  laws 
are  silent  from  brutal  violence  on  the  part  of  lawless  banditti  or  the 
corruption  of  the  tribunals  organized  to  enforce  them,  then  they  must 
be  made  to  speak  with  the  voice  of  inspiration  through  the  mouths  of 
the  truer  and  nobler  elements  of  society,  whose  wisdom,  courage  and 
fidelity  form  the  foundation  of  all  security  to  fife,  liberty  and  the  pur- 
suit of  happiness.  The  ignominious  death  of  these  men  was  the  result 
of  crimes  for  the  most  part  barbarous  and  cowardly.  Yet,  within  the 
veins  of  some  given  over  to  deeds  of  violence  that  blacken  the  pages  of 
criminal  history,  flowed  the  blood  of  heroes,  at  least  such  as  that  of 
which  heroes  are  made.  In  moments  of  extreme  peril,  when  weak 
and  faltering  humanity,  overcome  by  the  difficulties  and  dangers  sur- 
rounding them,  halted  by  the  wayside,  surrendered  in  despair,  or  lay 
down  at  length  to  die,  their  master  spirits  asserted  the  dominance  pro- 
ceeding from  their  royal  blood,  and  rose  up  like  giants  to  lead  the  way 
to  hope  and  rescue.  Let  me  relate  an  instance,  told  by  that  inimita- 
ble master  of  song  and  story,  Joaquin  Miller,  of  his  early  pioneer 
days.  When  the  news  reached  California  that  gold  had  been  found 
in  great  abundance  in  the  water-shed  of  the  Columbia  River,  without 

33 


514  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUIH'AIXS. 

waiting  for  a  confirmation  of  the  rumor,  great  numbers  of  miners 
poured  over  the  mountain  walls  of  California  and  Xerada  in  search  of 
their  fortunes,  which  the  early  days  of  '49  revealed-  It  was,  however, 
but  another  of  those  "  stampedes"  which  wreck  the  hopes  and  lives  of 
the  adventurous  and  roving  miner,  and  one  by  one  they  struggled  back  to 
the  more  prosperous  fields  they  had  abandoned  for  this  ignis-fatuus.  One 
of  these  parties,  nearly  starved,  attempted  to  reach  Shoshone  Falls 
through  the  thickly -timbered  mountains  from  Elk  City.  TThile  search- 
ing for  game  one  day  they  chanced  to  strike  a  little  stream  that  ran 
down  from  the  mountain  on  the  edge  of  a  prairie  Ixing  near  the  center 
of  a  large,  snow-covered  horse-shoe,  opening  to  the  south,  about  thirty 
miles  in  diameter.  A  fallen  tamarack  had  uprooted  the  earth,  and. 
moved  by  the  instincts  of  his  nature,  one  of  the  gold-hunters  took  up 
a  pan  of  the  earth  and  carelessly  washed  it  in  the  stream.  What  was 
his  astonishment  to  reap  as  his  reward  a  handful  of  rough  little  speci- 
mens of  gold  dust,  about  the  size  of  grains  of  wheat !  It  was  of  poor 
quality,  but  it  proved  to  be  the  discovery  of  the  great  gold-belt 
embracing  Salmon,  Warrens,  Boise,  Owyhee  and  Blackfoot,  that  after- 
ward founded  the  political  divisions  of  Idaho  Territory.  • 

On  the  3rd  day  of  December,  1S62,  a  fierce  storm  swept  over  the 
whole  gold  belt,  and  the  thousands  of  homeless  and  unprotected 
miners,  who  had  been  sleeping  on  the  ground  in  their  blankets,  while 
working  their  claims,  began  to  pour  over  the  horse-shoe  in  the 
direction  of  Lewiston,  taking  with  them  the  proceeds  of  their  labor  on 
the  bar  and  in  the  gulch  in  the  form  of  gold  dust.  The  story,  as 
related  by  Joaquin  Miller,  one  of  their  number,  is  full  of  vivid 
interest.  One  word  as  to  this  remarkable  man.  Joaquin  Miller, 
"  The  Poet  of  the  Sierras,"  whose  touching  songs  awaken  within  us  a 
reverence  for  Xature's  nobility.  A  minstrel  unto  the  mighty  manor 
bom,  whose  first  vision  fell  upon  nature's  majestic  works,  and  where 
songs  are  the  pictures  of  its  splendor.  The  fire  of  his  pen  thrills  the 
heart.  His  wealth  of  intelligence,  broad  views,  evidenced  by  travel 
and  contact  with  the  world,  his  genial  disposition  made  sunnier  b}*^ 
nature's  beautiful  and  lofty  truths,  make  him  the  genial  and  sunn}" 
companion  of  the  fireside.  He  is  one  of  the  world's  earnest  workers, 
whose  ambition  to  perform  the  uses  of  life  for  the  benefit  of  his 
fellow-man,  has  inspired  him  to  build  firm  foundations,  laid  broad  and 
deep  in  nature's  love  and  sympathy.     Long  may  he  live  to  wield  his 


NIGHT  ON  THE  LOWER  COLUMBIA. 
515 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  517 

master  pen.  He  and  a  party  of  nine  were  making  their  way  to 
"Walla  Walla  via  Lewisburg,  with  a  large  amount  of  gold  dust 
belonging  to  the  individual  members  of  the  party.  This  party  had 
been  followed  from  the  mines  by  Dave  English  and  Nelson  Scott,  two 
of  the  most  noted  desperadoes  of  the  mines,  accompanied  by  four 
others  of  like  character,  but  not  so  well  known.  As  there  was  not 
a  shadow  of  civil  law  and  Vigilance  Committees  had  not  yet  been 
created,  these  men,  black  with  crime,  moved  about  the  various  camps 
with  the  same  freedom  as  men  of  good  character.  English  was  a 
thick  set,  powerful  man,  with  black  beard  and  commanding  manners. 
One  of  his  gray  eyes  appeared  to  be  askew,  otherwise  he  was  a  fine- 
looking  man,  usually  good-natured,  but  terrible  when  aroused.  Scott 
was  tall,  slim,  brown-haired,  with  features  as  fair  and  delicate  as 
those  of  a  woman.  All  of  the  band  of  six  were  young  men  well 
known  in  California,  one  of  them  having  been  connected  with  a 
circus.  The  party  of  miners,  after  six  days'  travel,  reached  Lewiston 
in  safety,  and  English  and  his  companions  arrived  the  following  day. 
The  river  was  frozen  over  and  the  steamboats  all  tied  up  for  the 
winter,  and  the  ferry  almost  impassable.  The  miners  and  robbers 
watched  each  other's  motions,  and  the  latter  knew  their  motives  had 
been  divined.  The  miners  scarce  had  crossed  the  ferry,  when  the 
robbers  followed.  The  large  amount  of  gold  dust  of  the  miners  was 
the  object  of  their  prey.  They  were  splendidly  mounted  and  well 
armed,  and  prepared  for  any  deed  to  accomplish  their  end.  Says  the 
narrator:  "  It  was  twenty-four  mile^  to  Petalia,  the  nearest  station. 
The  days  were  short,  and  the  snow  deep.  With  the  best  of  fortune 
they  did  not  expect  to  make  it  before  night.  At  noon  they  left  the 
Alpowa,  and  rode  to  a  vast  plateau  without  stone,  stake  or  sign  to 
point  the  way  to  Petalia,  twelve  miles  distant.  The  snow  became 
deeper  and  more  difficult,  and  a  furious  wind  set  in  that  blinded  and 
discouraged  their  horses.  The  cold  was  intense.  They  had  not  been 
an  hour  on  this  high  plain  before  each  man's  face  was  a  mass  of  ice, 
and  their  horses  white  with  frost.  The  sun  faded  in  the  storm  like  a 
star  of  morning  drowned  in  a  flood  of  dawn.  Grave  fears  now  beset 
them.  English  and  his  robber  party  still  kept  the  lead.  Once  they 
stopped,  consulted,  looked  back,  and  then  in  a  little  while  silently 
moved  on.  The  storm  was  so  terrific  that  the  trail  behind  them  was 
obliterated  the  instant  they  passed  on;  return  was  therefore  impossible 


518  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    EOCKT    MOUXTAIXS. 

had  it  been  possible  for  them  to  recross  the  river  should  they 
reach  it.  Again  the  robbers  halted,  huddled  together,  looked  back, 
and  again  struggled  on,  English,  the  man  of  i»on,  most  of  the  time 
keeping  the  lead.  They  now  knew  they  were  in  deadly  peril,  not 
from  the  robbers  but  from  the  storm.  Again  the  robber  band  halted, 
again  grouped  together,  gesticulating  wildh'^  as  if  in  violent  argument- 
ative altercation,  and  again  moved  slowly  on.  The  party  of  miners 
followed,  the  horses  floundering  in  the  deep  snow,  while  the  trail 
closed  like  a  grave  behind  them.  About  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
standing  up  to  his  waste  in  the  snow,  English  shouted  to  them  to 
approach.  Pushing  on  through  the  storm,  with  their  heads  bowed 
and  necks  bent  like  cattle,  shielding  themselves  from  a  fierce  blast, 
they  reached  the  robber  party. 

"  H — I's  to  pa}',  boys  I "  said  English,  "  I  teU  you  h — Vs  to  pay,  and 
if  we  don't  keep  our  heads  level  we'll  go  up  the  flume  like  a  spring  sal- 
mon. Which  way^  do  you  think  is  the  station  ? "  No  one  could  tell. 
To  add  to  the  consternation,  they  now  found  that  three  of  their  party 
were  missing.  They  shouted  through  the  storm,  but  no  answer  came 
back ;  they  never  saw  them  again.  In  the  spring  some  Indians  found 
and  brought  in  a  note  book,  in  which  was  recorded  this  writing :  "  Lost 
in  the  snow,  December  19th,  1862.  James  A.  Keel,  of  Macoupin 
county,  Illinois;  Wesley  Dean,  of  St.  Louis,  Ed.  Parker,  of  Boston.  " 
At  the  same  time  they  brought  in  a  pair  of  boots  containing  bones  of 
human  feet.  A  party  of  citizens  went  out  and  found  the  remains  of 
the  three  men,  together  with  a  lai^e  sum  of  money. 

English  stopped,  studied  a  moment,  and  then  resolving  to  take  all 
in  his  own  hands,  said :  "  We  must  stick  together ;  stick  together  and 
follow  me.  I  will  shoot  the  first  man  who  refuses  to  obe\'^  and  send 
him  to  heU  a-fluking." 

Again  the  robber  chief,  now  in  supreme  command  in  the  hour  of 
danger  and  death,  led  on.  The  band  struggled  on  in  silence,  benumbed, 
helpless  and  half  dead.  Scott  seemed  like  a  child  beside  his  chieftain. 
The  balance  of  both  parties  were  as  feeble  and  as  spiritless  as  he.  Eng- 
lish was  the  only  one  whose  spirit  rose  above  the  storm.  His  whole 
ferocious  nature  seemed  aroused.  At  times  he  swore  like  a  madman.  The 
storm  increased  in  fury;  darkness  came  suddenly  on,  and  they  could 
not  see  each  other's  faces.  English  shouted  aloud  above  the  blast : 
"Come  up  to  me!"     They  obeyed  and  huddled  around   him  like 


619 


J 


ECHOES  from:  the  rocky  mountains.  521 

children.  "There  is  but  one  chance,"  said  he,  '' cut  your  saddles  off 
your  horses ! "  He  got  the  horses  as  close  together  as  possible 
and  shot  them  down,  throwing  away  his  pistols  as  he  emptied  them. 
Placing  the  saddles  on  top  of  the  pile  of  horses  he  made  each  man  wrap 
his  blankets  around  him  and  huddle  together  on  the  mass. 

"N'o  nodding  now,"  said  English,  "I'll  shoot  the  first  man  that 
fails  to  answer  when  I  call  him."  To  sleep  a  moment  meant  death  by 
freezing,  and  this  robber  chief,  this  king  of  men  in  the  hour  of  dire 
peril  and  death,  knew  it.  Every  man  seemed  to  surrender  all  hope, 
save  this  fierce  man  of  iron.  He  moved  as  if  in  his  element.  He  made 
a  track  in  the  snow  around  the  party  on  the  heap  and  kept  constantly 
moving  and  shouting.  Within  an  hour  they  saw  the  effect  of  his  rude 
action  ;  the  animal  heat  from  the  horses  warmed  their  benumbed  and 
stiffened  limbs  as  it  rose  from  their  prostrate  bodies,  while  darkness 
and  the  storm  reigned  over  them.  Thus  they  remained  for  hours  ;  Eng- 
lish shouting  and  swearing  through  the  storm,  tramped  in  the  circular 
track  he  made  about  them,  pistol  in  hand,  to  keep  them  awake  and  alive 
while  he  battered  his  own  body  to  keep  it  from  freezing.  Thus  the  ter- 
rible night  wore  on  until  toward  morning,  when  suddenly  English  ceased 
to  shout,  and  uttered  a  terrific  oath  of  surprise.  The  storm  had  sud- 
denly lifted  like  a  curtain,  and  far  above  in  the  heavens  moved  the 
round  moon  on  its  stately  course.  It  was  to  that  band  of  half-dead,  and 
well-nigh  frozen  men  as  the  pillar  of  flame  to  the  children  of  Israel. 
They  were  saved.  "With  the  dawn  of  the  morning  the  iron  man  bade 
the  others  follow  him.  It  was  almost  impossible  for  them  to  rise.  They 
fell,  rose  again,  fell  and  finally  stood  on  their  feet,  all  save  one,  a 
small  German  name  Ross ;  he  was  dead,  frozen  to  death. 

At  eleven  in  the  morning,  English,  who  still  resolutely  led  the 
party,  gave  a  shout  of  joy  as  he  stood  on  the  edge  of  a  basaltic  cliff 
and  looked  down  on  the  parterre.  A  long  straight  pillar  of  white 
smoke  rose  from  the  station,  like  a  column  of  marble  supporting  the 
over-hanging  dome.  Again,  it  was  the  pillar  of  cloud  that  led  the 
children  of  Isreal,  nowleadingtheselostchildrenof  the  mountains  amid 
the  snow  wastes  of  the  dreary  plain.  Warmed  back  again  to  life,  they 
returned  and  brought  in  the  body  of  their  companion  with  his  bag  of 
gold  dust,  and  in  a  few  days  the  trail  was  broken. 

The  company  of  miners  voluntarily  gave  to  some  of  English's 
band  a  portion  of  their  wealth.     English,  however,  resolutely   refused 


622  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

to  accept  the  present.  They  parted  at  the  station,  and  the  miners 
pursued  their  way  in  safety  to  Walla  Walla. 

Some  months  later  English,  Scott,  and  another  of  his  band,  named 
Peoples,  were  arrested  for  highwa}"  robbery  and  were  placed,  securel}'^ 
bound,  under  guard  in  a  log  house  on  the  stage  road.  That  night  was 
organized  the  first  vigilance  committee  of  the  Xorthem  Territories. 
It  consisted  of  six  men  belonging  to  the  Idaho  Express  Company.  At 
midnight  they  condemned  them  to  death  and  acquainted  them  of  their 
fate.  Scott  asked  for  time  to  pray,  English  swore  furiously  and 
Peoples  was  silent. 

One  of  the  Vigilantes  approached  Scott  while  in  the  attitude  of 
prayer  and  began  to  adjust  the  noose  about  his  neck.  English  cried 
out,  "  Hang  me  first  and  let  him  pray." 

The  wonderful  courage  of  the  man  appealed  to  the  sympathies 
and  admiration  of  these  rough  men  of  the  mountains,  and  they  would 
have  spared  him,  but,  having  proceeded  thus  far,  they  felt  they  could 
not  falter  now.  They  had  but  one  rope  and  executed  them  one  at  a 
time.  When  the  rope  was  adjusted  about  the  neck  of  English  he  was 
quietly  asked  by  his  executioners  to  invoke  the  mercy  of  his  God.  He 
held  his  head  down  a  moment,  muttered  something,  and  then  straight- 
ening up  turned  toward  Scott  and  said  :  "  Xelse,  pray  for  me  a  little, 
can't  you,  while  I  hang  ?     D — d  if  I  can  pra^'." 

He  looked  over  to  where  Peoples  sat  mute  as  a  stone,  and  contin- 
ued "D — d  if  I  can  pray;  Billy,  can  j'^ou?" 

Peoples  died  without  emotion  or  a  struggle.  When  Scott's  turn 
came,  he  was  still  praying  devoutly.  He  oflfered  large  sums  of  mone}', 
which  he  had  secreted  in  the  mountains,  for  his  life ;  but  they  told  him 
he  must  likewise  die.  Seeing  there  was  no  escape,  he .  removed  his 
watch  and  rings,  kissed  them  tenderly  and  handed  them  to  one  of  the 
Vigilantes,  sa3'ing :  "  Send  these  to  my  poor  Armina,"  and  quietly 
submitted  to  his  fate.  At  dawn  the  three  men  lay  dead  and  rigid  upon 
the  cabin  floor.  The  blood  that  dried  in  the  viens  of  one  was  of  the 
mould  that  runs  through  heroes'  veins,  and  had  he  in  his  early  days 
been  guided  in  the  nobler  channels  of  life,  he  might  have  been  a  Caesar 
or  a  Marlborough.  With  a  courage  as  sublime  as  the  bride  of  Collat- 
inus,  and  the  fortitude  of  a  Roman  soldier,  he  saved  the  lives  of  eleven 
human  beings  and  died,  within  four  months  after  this  sublime  act  of 
heroism,  an  ignominious  death  by  the  halter,  for  robbing  a  stage  coach. 
Such  is  life  with  its  grandest  possibilities  and  its  narrowest  results. 


CHAPTER  XXX YIL 

INDIAN  DANCES  — LEGENDERY  LORE  OF  THEIR  SOXG  AND  DANCE— BABY  SONGS 
OF  INDIAN  MOTHERS  — THE  YOUNG  WARRIOR'S  ORDEAL  — DANCE  OF  THE 
CALUMET  — INDIAN  RITES -THE  SCALP  DANCE -ORIGIN  OF  SCALPING  — NOT 
ALWAYS  FATAL- EXPERIENCES  OF  THIS  INDIAN  PASTIME. 

All  of  the  tribes  of  North  American  Indians  possess  the  elements 
of  music,  and  their  language  is  filled  with  eloquence  and  poetic  senti- 
ment. Blended  with  their  songs  and  chants  are  the  ever-engaging 
forms  of  their  ceremonial  dances.  They  are  sometimes  instituted  for 
the  amusement  of  the  tribe,  but  most  generally  are  a  religious  observ- 
ance and  constitute  a  striking  characteristic  of  their  manners  and 
customs.  It  is  a  mode  they  adopt  to  express  intense  feeling  and  pas- 
sion, and  is  so  inherent  in  their  nature  as  to  be  the  last  condition  of 
their  wild  life  to  be  abandoned  after  coming  under  the  influence  of 
civilization  and  Christian  teaching.  Without  variation  they  have 
engaged  in  the  legendary  art  through  all  changes  of  their  history  as  a 
people,  and  wherever  practiced  to-day  are  the  same,  undoubtedly,  as 
those  of  five  centuries  ago.  There  is  no  feast  or  religious  ceremony, 
no  rite  to  be  performed  in  peace  or  war,  that  does  not  embrace  the 
songs  and  dances  of  their  remote  ancestry.  For  each  good  fortune 
in  their  rude  lives,  their  success  in  the  chase,  their  triumphs  in  Avar, 
their  depredations  upon  the  tribal  wealth  of  their  foes,  the  scal[)S 
taken  from  their  enemies,  the  safe  return  of  a  war  party,  the  prepara- 
tions for  a  warrior,  the  moving  of  an  Indian  village,  sickness  or 
famine,  lack  of  water  rain  or  buffalo,  honors  conferred  upon  the 
renowned  of  their  tribes,  the  glory  of  an  achievement,  or  bereavement 
by  war  or  pestilence,  the  public  opinion  of  the  chief  men  of  their  tribe 
as  well  as  the  moral  instruction  and  advice  given  their  young,  and  for 
every  ordinary  providential  care,  the  common  resource  of  the  Indians 
is  the  dance.  In  their  rude  society  its  various  forms  and  composition 
take  the  place  of  the  press,  the  books  of  instruction  and  the  means  of 
education  that  prevail  in  the  enlightened  societies  of  the  civilized 
world.  Their  "medicinemen,"  the  priests  and  prophets  of  their  tribes, 
cultivate  their  natural  instincts  for  these  forms  and  ceremonials,  induct 

523 


624  ECHOES    FfiOM    THE     ROCKY     MOUNTAIXS. 

them  in  the  dance,  originate  their  songs  and  become  their-poets  and 
historians.  Through  their  dances,  some  of  them^revolting  and  cruel  in 
the  extremest  degree,  tradition  descends  from  generation  to  generation, 
from  age  to  age,  and  all  the  legends  of  the  vast  tribes  that  once 
peopled  this  land  have  been  thus  handed  down  through  their  songs 
and  dances.  The  love  song  of  the  maiden,  the  wooing  of  the  young 
brave,  the  plaintive  melody  of  maternal  affection,  and  the  tearful  wail 
for  the  dead,  are  embalmed  from  generation  to  generation  in  their 
legendary  songs.  Even  the  little  children  pla3'ing  before  their  lodge 
doors  possess  their  simple  chants  taught  them  as  soon  as  they  are  able 


AX   IXDIAX   DAXCE. 

to  lisp  in  Indian  syx.able,  and  their  fables  and  tender  supplications  sung 
ages  ago,  are  preserved  in  their  duets  of  as  wild  song  as  when  ]N^orma 
chants  her  love  refrain.  Bat  in  the  dance  and  its  mystic  forms  and 
ceremonies,  blended  with  the  wild  notes  of  rude  voices,  are  recorded 
their  heroic  thought,  their  warlike  deeds,  their  intense  passion  and  the 
customs  of  their  ancestors  ages  ago,  before  the  white  man  trod  the 
soil  of  the  Xew  "World. 

"With  the  hope  of  pleasing  the  Great  Spirit  and  as  an  atonement  for 
all  past  misdeeds,  and  that  he  would  direct  the  steps  of  the  buffalo  very 
near  to  their  viUage,were  the  promptings  that  induced  the  Gros  Ventres 
of  the  Upper  Missouri  in  1867  to  make  their  great  '•'  Bull  Medicine." 
The  ceremonies  attendant  upon  this  particular  act  occupied  four  days. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  525 

and  were  preceded  by  elaborate  preparations  on  the  part  of  the  squaws 
who  arranged  a  large  and  spacious  lodge  and  cleaned  the  ground  com- 
posing the  center  of  their  village.  A  strict  fast,  is  enjoined  upon  all 
who  take  part  in  the  ceremonies  during  the  whole  four  days,  but  this 
is  not  so  much  of  a  privation  as  one  unacquainted  with  Indian  life  would 
suppose.  Frequently  whole  tribes  are  compelled  by  lack  of  food  to 
fast  for  even  a  longer  period,  and  each  day  the  warrior  tightens  the 
belt  about  his  waist  to  stay  the  cravings  of  hunger  and  patiently  awaits 
the  opportunity  to  "  gorge."  The  Indian  system  seems  so  formed  by 
long  experience  as  to  be  able  to  consume  the  most  solid  food  following 
a  long  fast  without  any  appreciable  ill  effects ;  and  that  which  would 
be  death  to  the  civilized  is  but  an  increased  form  of  pleasure  to  the 
savage. 

The  first  day  of  the  proceedings,  the  old  Mandan  medicine  man 
approached  the  center  of  the  space  allotted  for  the  rites,  near  the  lodge, 
surrounded  by  a  band  of  athletes  conspicuous  for  their  strong  and  pow- 
erful physique  as  well  as  their  contrast  with  the  old  and  shriveled 
Mandan,  and  in  a  subdued  and  plaintive  voice  began  an  invocation  to 
the  Great  Spirit.  With  the  exception  of  the  skin  of  a  w^hite  wolf  care- 
lessly thrown  over  the  left  shoulder,  he  was  entirely  naked.  A  fillet 
of  the  same  was  bound  around  each  ankle  and  two  wolf-tails  drag- 
gled from  the  heels  of  his  moccasins.  His  head  was  covered  with  a 
cap  made  from  a  white  buffalo  skin,  adorned  with  the  claws  and  tail 
feathers  of  an  eagle.  This  invocation  was  repeated  at  intervals  and 
concluded  by  a  tramp  around  the  sacred  lodge,  accompanied  by  a  wail- 
ing song  of  propitiation  to  the  Great  Spirit. 

On  the  second  day  the  sacred  lodge  was  opened  and  filled  with 
the  athletes  who  were  to  undergo  the  fearful  tortures  of  the  ceremony. 
Upon  the  interior  linings  of  the  lodge  were  arranged  their  shields, 
lances  and  medicine  bags.  Some  of  them  were  in  a  reclining  position 
and  others  appeared  as  if  asleep. 

The  medicine  man  sat  in  the  center  near  the  embers  of  a  fire, 
smoking  a  large,  beautifully-made  pipe  and  at  intervals,  as  on  the  pre- 
vious day,  invoking  the  aid  of  the  Great  Spirit.  A  band  of  six  war- 
riors was  likewise  present,  who  were  to  take  part  in  the  dances,  and 
they  occupied  their  time  in  painting  their  bodies  with  alternate  bars 
of  red  and  white  and  clothing  themselves  with  pieces  of  shaggy  buffalo 
robe  and  binding  on  their  backs  large  bunches  of  green  willows,  while 


526  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

in  their  hands  they  carried  smaller  bunches  of  the  same.  The}^  repre- 
sented the  bulls,  and  at  regular  intervals  came  forth  and  danced  around 
the  open  area  in  the  center  of  the  village.  Aii  object  resembling  a 
large  rqund  tub  had  also  been  built  not  far  from  the  sacred  lodge,  and 
suddenly  the  Mandan  emerged  from  his  lodge  with  his  pipe  in  his 
hand,  and  leaning  upon  the  tub  cried  out  in  a  loud  voice  to  the  Great 
Spirit.  Within  the  lodge  there  was  the  sound  of  rattles,  and  at  a 
given  signal  three  crouching  forms  appeared  with  drums  garnished 
with  feathers  and  seated  themselves  on  the  ground  close  beside  the 
medicine  man.  Two  others  bearing  rattles  followed,  and  then  a  loud 
drumming  and  rattling  began,  which  was  the  sign  for  the  dancers  to 
come  forth.  All  the  tribe  in  the  village  now  assembled  to  witness  the 
ceremony  held  in  the  very  highest  esteem,  and  watched  with  breathless 
interest  the  bull  dancers  come  forth  from  the  Medicine  Lodffe,  two  bv 
two  with  an  irregular,  shuffling  step,  in  their  fantg^tic  garb,  and  slowly 
circle  round  the  tub.  This,  together  with  their  wailing  sounds,  rat- 
tlings  and  drum  beatings,  oft  repeated;  the  jarring  dance  of  the 
'•bulls"  and  the  loud  invocations  of  the  Mandan  to  the  Great  Spirit, 
closed  the  proceedings  of  the  second  day. 

On  the  third  day  the  most  exciting  portions  of  the  ceremony 
occurred.  From  the  Medicine  Lodge  poured  forth  a  band  of  sixty 
antelopes,  moving  in  every  direction.  They  were  men  and  boys  of  all 
sizes,  their  naked  bodies  painted  all  over  with  white  clay,  and  willow 
twigs  worn  in  the  shape  of  horns  attached  securely  to  their  heads. 
Then  began  a  curious  dance  of  the  bulls  and  antelopes,  both  thrilling 
and  amusing,  which  lasted  for  an  hour  or  more  at  intervals,  when  sud- 
denly the  buUs  broke  away  in  various  directions,  the  majority  of  them 
running  through  groups  of  young  girls  and  women,  who  scattered  in  a 
lively  manner  at  their  swift  approach,  filling  the  air  with  screams  of 
laughter  and  fleeing  for  safety  to  lodges  where  pots  of  boiled  mush 
were  dished  out  to  them  for  refreshments, very  similar  in  manner  to  the 
ice  cream  served  their  pale  sisters  at  so-called  civilized  entertainments. 

The  Mandan  and  his  musicians  retired  immediately  to  the  sacred 
lodge,  and  after  partaking  of  food,  the  bulls  followed  to  repeat  the 
dance  at  intervals. 

The  herd  of  antelopes  kept  up  an  incessant  race,  running  hither 
and  thither  over  the  ground,  on  the  tops  of  lodges,  through  groups 
of    squaws,  and  everywhere    else  where  mischief   could  be    played 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  527 

indiscriminately.  ]^ear  the  large  tub  were  likewise  a  number  of  boys 
shaped  as  frogs,  who  danced  and  hopped  about  in  the  most  grotesque 
manner,  eliciting  many  plaudits  from  the  multitude  of  spectators.  An  * 
ancient  looking  squaw  came  forward  and  passed  a  large  wooden  bowl 
of  mush  to  one  of  the  frogs  which  he  vainly  endeavored  to  place  to 
his  lips.  It  was  snatched  from  him  by  an  antelope,  whereupon  the 
whole  herd  made  a  dash  for  the  prize,  and  in  the  scramble  it  was  poured 
upon  the  ground,  and  the  old  squaw,  with  feigned  indignation  and 
many  imprecations,  returned  in  disgust  to  her  lodge.  The  frogs  now 
pursued  the  antelopes  to  be  revenged  for  the  theft  of  the  mush,  but 
could  not  succeed  in  overtaking  them.  At  this  instant  another  old  squaw 
approached  with  a  second  bowl  of  mush,  which  was  snatched  from  her 
hands  by  an  antelope,  and  in  the  attempt  to  swallow  it  was  inter- 
cepted by  others  of  the  herd  and  the  contents  again  poured  upon  the 
earth.  Another  squaw  quickly  appeared  with  a  third  bowl,  younger 
and  apparently  more  watchful  and  cunning  than  her  preceding 
sisters,  and  as  an  antelope  crept  softly  behind  her  to  capture  the  bowl, 
she  turned  suddenly  and  dashed  the  mush  all  over  him.  This  exploit 
was  greeted  with  intense  satisfaction  by  the  spectators. 

Thus  the  sport  proceeds,  while  all  the  time  the  bulls  have  kept  up 
their  sliuffling  dance.  Now  the  scene  changes.  Silence  takes  the 
place  of  merriment,  solemnity  succeeds  hilarity.  One  by  one  from  the 
Mandan  lodge,  in  Indian  file  with  slow  and  measured  tread,  come  the 
young  men  who  have  been  fasting.  They  are  entirely  nude,  with 
the  exception  of  a  scarlet  waistband  or  breech-clout,  which  is  firmly 
adjusted.  Their  limbs  and  bodies  are  painted  with  yellow  clay,  and 
each  carries  a  lance  with  fluttering  streamers  and  war  eagle  feathers, 
and  over  their  shoulders  is  strung  a  shield  painted  and  adorned  with 
fanciful  colors.  They  prostrate  themselves  upon  the  ground  and  offer 
a  silent  prayer  to  the  Great  Spirit  for  strength  and  courage  to  success- 
fully undergo  the  cruel  ordeal  to  which  they  are  about  to  be  subjected. 
Slowly  rising  from  their  position  upon  the  ground  they  retrace  their 
steps  to  the  lodge. 

The  bulls  now  proceed  with  renewed  energy  and  the  antelopes 
resume  their  mischievous  pranks,  and  two  old  warriors  emerge  from 
the  medicine  lodge  accompanied  by  two  of  the  athletes.  Approaching 
two  stout  poles,  twelve  feet  high  and  securely  planted  in  the  ground, 
they  unloose  certain  cords  of  rawhide  hanging  pendant  therefrom. 


528  ECHOES    FROM  THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS, 

One  of  the  athletes  no\v  knelt  at  the  foot  of  the  pole,  resting  his 
thighs  on  his  heels  and  throwing  his  head  back  and  his  breast  for- 
*  ward  supporting  himself  thus  by  his  hands.  The  old  men  who  stood 
on  either  side  with  an  ugly-looking  butcher-knife,  such  as  we  would 
use  to  slaughter  hogs,  and  which  the}'^  have  often  used  upon  the  bear 
and  buffalo,  now  cut  through  the  skin  and  flesh  on  each  breast  and 
thrusting  splinters  under  the  sinews  attach  the  thongs  to  them.  The 
same  operation  was  performed  on  the  other  athlete.  Xot  a  muscle 
moved  on  the  stoic  Indian's  face,  not  a  sound  escaped  them  as  they 
endured  the  pain  and  suffering  attendant  upon  such  a  cruel  act. 
Rising  to  their  feet  each  threw  the  whole  weight  of  his  bod}'^  upon 
the  cords  with  the  blood  streaming  from  his  wounds  and  tried  to  tear 
himself  loose.  One  sprang  violently  the  full  length  of  the  rawhide 
cord  and  then  hung  with  his  whole  weight  upon  the  bleeding 
sinews  of  his  lacerated  breast,  hurling  himself  each  instant  against  the 
post,  swinging  off  and  around  it  and  praj'ing  in  the  most  supplicating 
tones  to  the  Great  Spirit  that  He  might  make  him  a  great  hunter  and 
warrior,  renowned  among  his  tribe  for  valor  and  endurance,  and  that 
his  heart  might  be  made  strong  to  bear  his  present  ordeal.  Finally, 
fainting  from  the  agony  of  his  sufferings  he  hung  limp  and  apparently 
lifeless  until  the  heavy  strain  upon  the  splinters  tore  them  out  and  he 
fell  in  a  lump  to  the  ground.  His  delighted  relatives  now  ran  forward 
and  carried  him  to  their  lodge,  where  he  was  revived  by  food  and 
drink  and  received  the  warm  congratulations  of  the  tribe.  The  other 
performed  the  same  painful  acts,  until  he,  too,  fainted  and  was  removed 
thence  by  his  relatives  and  after  being  revived  received  the  same  con- 
gratulations. 

No  aid  can  be  rendered  the  candidate  for  warrior  honors  while 
undergoing  this  ordeal.  To  remove  the  splints  or  cut  the  cords  would 
be  fatal  to  the  power  of  the  "  Medicine.*'  Sometimes  the  agony  is 
prolonged  for  many  hours  by  reason  of  the  greater  strength  of  the 
sinews,  and  so  far  from  releasing  them  from  their  sufferings  the  custom 
is  to  attach  heavy  weights  to  the  body  and  thus  tear  the  sinews  from 
the  body.  This,  however,  is  an  ordeal  to  which  aU  young  warriors 
look  forward  to  very  much  as  a  civilized  youth  anticipates  the  honors 
that  await  him  at  the  ceremonies  that  close  his  university  course.  All 
who  pass  through  it  without  exhibiting  fear  or  shrinking  from  its 
terrors,  are  henceforth  regarded  as  strong-hearted  warriors  and  mighty 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  629 

hunters,  worthy  of  all  honors  from  the  tribe,  and  ready  for  the  excite- 
ment of  the  chase  or  the  bloody  laurels  to  be  gathered  on  the  war- 
path. 

The  fourth  day  was  similar  to  the  third,  with  the  additional  per- 
formance, on  that  day  alone,  of  the  friends  and  relatives  of  those  who 
had  not  succeded  in  tearing  away  their  sinews,  being  permitted  to 
drag  them  around  in  a  circle  by  their  hands  until  the  heavy  weights 
attached  to  their  legs  were  torn  out  by  the  violence  of  the  race. 

It  is  related  that  it  sometimes  occurs  that  the  sinews  are  so  strong 
and  tough  as  to  resist  every  effort  to  break  them.  The  candidates 
thereupon  crawl  out  upon  the  plains  in  some  retired  spot  and  lie  there 
until  they  are  rotted  away. 

Such  is  a  part  of  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  Indian  religion. 
An  invocation  to  the  (areat  Spirit  for  blessings  upon  their  tribe,  and 
especially  upon  those  who  by  self-inflicted  torture  demonstrate  their 
willingness  and  ability  to  become  great  warriors  and  hunters, 
renowned  in  the  arts  of  war  and  distinguished  as  successful  horse  steal- 
ers. Their  fasts  and  self-inflicted  torture  and  supplications  to  the 
Great  Spirit  are  evidences  of  their  belief  in  a  Superior  Being  who 
presides  over  the  happy  hunting-grounds  to  reach  which  is  the 
crowning  hope  of  an  Indian's  life  on  earth. 

The  dance  of  the  Calumet,  or  Pipe  of  Peace,  is  one  of  the  most 
engaging  of  Indian  ceremonies.  While  preparations  are  being  made 
for  this  dance  all  is  excitement  in  the  Indian  valley — everybody  talks 
about  it.  The  chief  bustles  around  buying  ribbons  and  beads  to  decor- 
ate the  stem  of  the  Pipe  of  Peace  and  make  ready  for  the  rites  soon  to 
be  performed.  The  chief  who  is  to  be  honored  with  the  dance  keeps 
within  the  lodge  engaged  in  meditation  and  smoking  the  fragrant 
kinnikinick.  The  young  braves  attire  themselves  as  gorgeously  as 
their  means  will  permit,  and  the  young  squaws  add  an  extra  touch  of 
vermilion  to  their  bronzed  cheeks. 

The  day  finally  arrives,  chosen  by  the  principal  men  of  the  tribe 
for  the  ceremony,  and  about  noon  the  chiefs  appear  in  the  doors  of  the 
lodge  gaily  decorated  and  painted  for  the  auspicious  occasion.  Chant- 
ing in  a  low  tone  an  invocation  to  the  Great  Spirit,  and  shaking  their 
rattles,  they  wave  their  Calumets  with  their  beautiful  blue  stems 
adorned  with  war  eagle  feathers,  making  their  medicine  first  to  the 
rising  and  then  to  the  setting  sun,  after  which  they  descend  and  enter 

Si 


530  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

the  lodge,  which  is  large  in  proportion  and  covered  with  earth.  At  its 
farther  end  four  of  the  principal  men  of  the  .yillage  sit  engaged  in 
ceaseless  singing  and  drumming.  Before  each  lie  medicine  sticks. 
Two  of  them  entering  immediately  engage  in  dancing  and  waving 
their  Calumets  and  shaking  their  rattla<?.  In  the  center  is  a  fire,  over 
which  a  kettle  of  buffalo  meat  is  boiling,  presided  over  by  a  chief 
engaged  constantly  in  smoking  Kinickinick.  These  ceremonies,  witl) 
but  little  variation,  are  repeated  incessantly  for  four  days.  On  the  fifth 
day  the  important  part  of  the  rites  begin.  After  the  invocation  from 
the  roof  of  the  lodge  and  the  dance  inside,  a  procession  is  formed  and 
all  proceed  to  the  prairie  carrying  two  buffalo  skulls  painted  red.  The 
musicians  seat  themselves  in  a  long  row,  sing  and  drum,  and  pass  the 
Calumet  from  one  to  another. 

When  all  the  Kinikinick  m  the  bowl  is  consumed  it  is  not  refilled, 
but  all  arise  and  refonn  the  procession  and  bear  tlie  pipe  to  the  lodge 
of  a  principal  chief  of  the  tribe.  As  many  are  admitted  as  will  not 
interfere  with  the  dancing,  among  whom  is  the  oldest  man  and  the 
3'oungest  child  in  the  village. 

After  an  introductory  song  and  dance  a  delegation  of  braves, 
including  the  musicians,  departed  to  the  lodge  of  the  one  upon  whom 
the  honor  of  the  dance  had  been  conferred,  to  conduct  him  to  the 
place  where  the  honors  of  the  occasion  awaited  him.  Then  the  pro- 
cession again  formed  and  marched  several  times  around  the  fire,  the 
chiefs  and  head  men  of  the  tribe  surrounding  the  Honor  Chief,  his 
family  following  and  the  musicians  bringing  up  the  rear.  This  being 
concluded,  they  were  seated  at  the  head  of  the  lodge,  the  music  began 
and  one  of  the  chiefs  sprang  quickly  to  his  feet,  shaking  his  rattle, 
waving  his  calumet,  and  dancing  with  a  peculiar  jarring  step. 
Another  chief  now  arose  and  began  an  address  to  those  assembled 
urging  them  all  "  to  throw  to  the  Medicine."  Each  responded  in  turn, 
coming  forward  singly  and  bestowing  presents  of  guns,  blankets 
calicos,  scarlet  and  blue  cloth,  beads,  finely- worked  buffalo  robes  and 
everything  comprised  within  the  possessions  of  a  Dakota  band  of  Indians 
When  all  the  presents  had  been  given,  the  dancing  ended,  tlie  music 
ceased  and  the  crowd  dispersed,  while  the  chief  began  to  distribute 
among  his  friends  the  presents  he  had  received. 

This  dance  of  the  Calumet  is  one  of  the  most  important  of  all  the 
dances  and  the  Medicine  feasts  of  the  Xorth  American  Indians.     It  is 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


531 


always  given  in  honor  of  some  member  of  the  tribe  who  ever  after  is 
regarded  as  one  of  their  most  distinguished.  By  this  ceremony  he  is 
especially  confided  to  the  care  of  the  Great  Spirit  who  is  presumed  over 
after  to  take  particular  care  of,  and  provide  for  all  his  waists.  Success 
will  attend  all  his  efforts  in  the  chase  or  on  the  war-path.  Many 
scalps  will  hang  from  his  girdle  and  adorn  his  lodge  poles.  He  will 
steal  many  fine  horses  from  his  enemies,  buffalo  meat  will  be  abundant, 


THE  SCALP   DANCE. 


his  children  will  never  cry  for  food,  and  he  himself  will  forever  after 
have  a  charmed  presence  in  battle. 

The  return  of  a  war  party  is  the  occasion  of  a  ceremony  of  gen- 
eral rejoicing  on  the  part  of  the  tribe.  The  ground  within  their 
lodges  is  swept  clean  and  all  utensils  used  during  their  absence  are 
carried  without.  The  warriors  decorate  themselves  with  beads  and 
war  eagle  feathers,  a  tuft  of  long  white  ones  being  affixed  to  the 
crowns  of  their  heads;  red  and  black  figures  are  painted  on  their 
bodies.  On  nearing  their  villages  they  raise  their  voices  in  song,  and 
bear  in  their  hands  branches  of  pines  on  which  are  hung  the   scalps 


632  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

taken  from  their  enemies.  Arriving  at  a  lodge  containing  their  sacred 
symbols,  the  chief  of  the  tribe  walks  in  a  direction  opposite  to  the  course 
of  the  sun,  crying  aloud  an  invocation  while  the  Sircle  is  being  formed. 
Opposite  the  door  is  the  war-pole,  and  beside  it  a  square  box  securely 
fastened  together,  containing  their  mystic  symbols.  They  all  sit  down 
upon  the  earth,  and  the  sQence  is  unbroken.  At  length  the  warriors 
rise,  and  following  their  chief  who  leads  the  way,  make  the  circle  of 
the  war-pole,  chanting  a  peculiar  invocation  three  times.  Each  in  the 
order  of  succession  now  enters  the  lodge  on  whose  hearth  burns  the 
sacred  fire.  Three  da3's  and  nights  are  given  to  fasting.  The  women 
stand  beside  the  door  in  two  rows  the  first  night  of  the  fast,  chanting 
at  mtervals  in  a  shrill  voice,  followed  by  an  absolute  silence.  From 
time  to  time  during  the  fast  the  chief  appears  with  his  warrioi-s, 
shouting  the  war  whoops,  marching  around  the  circle  of  the  war-pole 
and  waving  the  branches  to  which  the  scalps  are  appended.  Finally, 
a  general  procession  is  formed  with  the  chief  at  the  head,  each  in 
orderh'^  succession  as  before,  followed  by  the  squaws,  and  march 
around  the  chiefs  lodge  from  the  East  to  the  IS^orth  '  where  the  evil 
spirit  dwells'  the  warriors  singing  the  death  song.  After  the  proces- 
sion they  affix  to  the  roof  of  the  lodge  a  branch  with  a  piece  of  a 
scalp  affixed  thereto.  This  is  repeated  at  each  lodge  of  the  village  to 
appease  the  spirits  of  the  dead,  and  then  the  ceremony  ends. 

Another  form  of  the  ceremony  is  the  'scalp  dance,  where  a  grand 
war  party  returns  in  triumph,  bearing  the  scalps  upon  the  points  of 
their  lances.  All  the  Indian  village  run  forth  fo  greet  them,  the 
squaws  singing  and  dancing  in  the  exuberance  of  their  joy.  The  victors 
form  in  a  line  and  ride  inclose  order  up  to  the  village,  where  they  halt 
to  receive  the  praises  and  congratulations  they  have  earned  b}'  their 
exploits.  In  the  wild  intoxication  of  success  the  leaders  give  away 
guns  and  horses.  Their  generosity  is  unbounded,  to  be  deeply  regretted 
a  day  after,  perhaps  sooner.  A  pole  is  set  up  in  front  of  the  lodges  of 
those  who  may  have  been  slain  during  their  absence,  and  where  their 
relatives  are  bewailing  them;  the  drum  is  beaten,  and  the  scalp  dance 
begins.  All  da}"  long,  all  night  and  the  day  following  the  rejoicings 
continue,  and  the  scalp  dancers  are  the  pride  of  the  village.  Headed  by 
their  chief,  they  gather  in  a  dense  group,  sound  their  rattles,  sing  and 
drum,  while  the  squaws  shuffle  around  them  in  a  circle,  bearing  the 
scalps  on  poles,  screaming  in  their  shrillest  tones  the  wild  notes  of  the 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


533 


scalp  dance.  During  all  this  time  the  faces  of  the  warriors  and  the 
women  are  painted  black,  and  they  look  like  devils  let  loose  from 
darkness. 

The  custom  of  scalping  among  the  Indians  grew  out  of  the  false 
claims  made  by  members  of  tribes  to  the  honor  of  killing  their  enemies. 
It  was  intended  to  be  the  proof  of  the  killing — the  evidence  of  personal 
bravery  and  daring.  The  act  in  itself  is  not  necessarily  fatal.  Several 
cases  have  come  under  my  own  observation  where  the  parties  suffered 
this  torture  and  yet  survived  from  that  and  other  wounds,   enjoying 


BLOODY  LAURELS  OF  THE  WAR  PATH. 


apparently  as  good  health  as  before  the  act.  I  recall  the  case  of  the 
railroad  agent  at  Plum  Creek,  Nebraska,  in  1867,  who  was  the  sole 
survivor  of  the  Indian  massacre  at  that  point.  The  railroad  at  that 
time  was  completed  to  Julesburg,  and  freight  and  passenger  trains 
were  running  in  comparative  safety.  One  day  a  small  war  party  of 
Arapahoes  came  suddenly  upon  the  line  of  the  railroad  near  that 
station  and,  by  placing  obstructions  upon  the  track,  derailed  and  de- 
stroyed a  freight  train  and  killed  and  scalped  all  its  attendants.  The 
station  agent,  while  endeavoring  to  make  his  escape,  was  shot  and 
wounded,  and    feigning   death  was  further  unmolested  after  being 


534  ECHOES    FBOX    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

scalped.  Upon  the  destruction  of  the  train,  the  murder  of  its  crew 
and  the  capture  of  all  the  goods  the  savages  could  cany  off  upon  their 
ponies,  they  departed  and  left  the  station  agent  alive  and  comparatively 
unhurt,  save  the  loss  of  his  scalp.  Strange  to  relate,  he  found  his  own 
scalp  after  the  Indians  had  gone,  they  having  droppod  it  in  their  eager 
search  for  pelf.  He  walked  all  the  way  to  the  nearest  station,  a 
distance  of  forty  miles,  where  he  received  certain  attention.  I  saw  hira 
nearly  four  years  afterward — hale,  hearty  and  in  as  good  health  as 
before  the  savages  tore  his  scalp  lock  from  his  head. 

Another  remarkable  case  occurred  at  Sydney,  Xebraska,  not  fa** 
away  from  Plum  Creek  about  one  year  afterward;  On  the  28th  of 
April,  1868,  Thomas  Cahone  and  WiUis  Edmonston,  freight  conductors 
of  the  Union  Pacific  Eailwav.  were  fishino:  in  a  small  stream  near  that 
place.  They  were  unarmed,  as  no  danger  was  anticipated  from 
Indians,  the  terminus  of  the  road  being  now  at  Cheyenne,  and  trains 
were  constantly  passing  and  repassing.  There  was  likewise  a  compau}- 
of  United  States  Infantry  stationed  at  Sidney.  Suddenly  a  small 
party  of  mounted  Sioux  swept  down  on  the  fishermen  in  plain  view  of 
the  fort  and  the  town.  The  Indians  had  just  fail^  to  run  off  a  small 
band  of  horses,  having  been  fired  at  and  driven  off  by  the  herders. 
The  Indians  had  seimrated  into  two  parties,  one  going  down  the  track 
near  which  the  men  were  fishing,  the  other  circUng  after  the  stock. 
The  men  were  thus  caught  between  the  two  bands  and  no  escape 
offered.  Biding  up  beside  the  '*  lone  fishermen ''  they  shot  eight 
arrows  into  and  through  Cahone,  one  passing  entirely  through  his 
lx)dy  from  shoulder-blade  to  breast,  which  passing  through  his  lung 
produced  a  great  flow  of  blood.  Four  arrows  were  shot  into  Edmons- 
ton, but  he  escaped  without  being  scalped.  As  Cahone  fell  on  his 
right  side  two  Indians  dismounted,  one  taking  his  scalp  proper,  the 
other  cut  off  the  scalp  from  the  left  side  about  seven  by  four  inches- 
The  soldiers  and  citizens  rushing  to  the  rescue  and  driving  the  Indians 
away  prevented  the  scalping  of  Edmonston.  The  wounded  men  were 
brought  to  the  station  where  the  arrows  were  cut  out  of  their  bodies. 
Xeither  lost  consciousness  during  the  painful  operation.  Cahone 
stated  that  while  he  was  being  scalped  he  closed  his  eyes,  expecting 
each  instant  to  have  his  skull  crushed  or  feel  the  knife  being  plunged 
in  his  body.  He  rapidly  recovered  from  his  wounds  and  has  been  in 
the  employ  of  the  Company  ever  since  as  a  passenger  conductor.     He 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  •  535 

declares  his  health  to  be  as  good  as  it  ever  was,  and  surely  his  appear- 
ance indicates  it.  Edmonston  was  also  a  passenger  conductor,  running 
west  from  Ogden  on  the  Central  Pacific  line.  Cahone  was  twenty-five 
years  age  when  wounded  and  scalped,  and  had  served  during  the  war 
in  a  Pennsvlvania  regiment. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

SUN  DANCE  OF  SIOUX  — ITS  RELIGIOUS  CHARACTER  — THE  WOLF  DANCE  OF  THE 
TOXKAWAS  — THE  SNAKE  DANCE  OF  THE  MOQUIS  — THEIR  DISCOVERY  BY 
THE  SPANISH  MISSIONARIES  — DIAGRAM  ILLUSTRATING  CEREMONIES  OF  THE 
DANCE— STORY  OF  "NIGHT  ON  THE  PLAINS" -THE  SLEEPING  SENTINEL- 
MIDNIGHT— THE  STAKE,  HUMAN  Ln-fiS- THE  BLACKFOOT  INDIAN  SCOUT - 
THE  AVENGING  FANG  OF  THE  RATTLESNAKE— THE  FAMILY  SAVED. 

The  Sun  Dance  is  a  religious  ceremonv-,  the  fulfilment  of  a  vow 
made  to  some  mysterious  force  in  nature.  It  is  an  offering  by  a  savage 
heart  as  the  complement  of  an  agreement  with  the  Great  Spirit  in 
times  of  sore  distress.  Thus,  if  an  Indian  be  surrounded  by  his  foes, 
he  promises  the  God  of  the  Sun  that  if  delivered  therefrom  he  will  in 
the  full  of  the  June  moon  dance  the  Sun  Dance.  If  some  friend  or 
kin  is  at  the  point  of  'death,  he  makes  the  same  vow,  that  the  Great 
Spirit  may  restore  him  to  health.  In  such  moments  of  trial  he  calls 
upon  this  mysterious  force  of  nature  for  aid,  and  promises  that  he  will 
subject  himself  to  physical  suffering  and  torture,  fasting  and  mutila- 
tion, if  aid  be  extended  and  his  enemies  baffled. 

It  is  purely^  of  a  religious  character  and  has  been  maintained  in  all 
its  legendary  force  and  forms,  notwithstanding  the  encroachments  of 
the  white  race  and  their  teaching.  It  is  an  evidence,  that  before  the 
diffusion  of  the  Christian  religion  the  Sun  was  the  central  deity  for 
worship.  The  correspondence  is  beautiful  and  more  than  one  modern 
sect  holds  that  in  the  other  life  the  Supreme  Being  will  be  seen  only 
as  a  Sun. 

As  remarked,  the  month  of  June  is  the  period  when  the  rites  of 
this  dance  are  generally  performed,  and  with  the  warm  breath  of  the 
radiant  spring  fanning  the  flowers  and  clothing  the  earth  in  beauty, 
the  Indians  decorate  themselves  and  ix>nies  with  crowns  and  shields  of 
wild  clematis  and  other  bright  foliage  from  tree  and  shrub.  The 
tepees  are  formed  in  a  circle  in  preparation  for  the  ceremonies,  with 
an  open  space  toward  the  East.  The  Sun  Dance  pole  is  selected  by  the 
Medicine  Man  with  great  care  and  interest,  the  whole  village  joining 
in  its  pursuit  and  transportation  home.    It  is  usually  of  cottonwood, 

S3S 


INDIAN  VILLAGE-SUN  DANCE  POLE. 


I 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS.  539 

ei^ht  inches  thick  and  about  thirtj-five  feet  long  from  butt  to  the  fork 
of  the  branches.  "When  the  tree  is  found  which  the  Medicine  Man 
pronounces  appropriate,  from  among  the  painted  and  decorated  savages 
advances  the  one  who  lias  performed  the  bravest  deed  during  the  past 
year,  and  hits  the  tree  a  light  blow  with  an  ax  and  gives  two  sticks  to 
one  or  two  old  women  who  dance  and  chant  and  howl  in  a  hideous 
manner.  These  sticks  are  tokens  and  valued  each  at  a  pony.  Then 
three  more  follow  suit;  strike  the  tree  and  give  something  to  the  poor. 
Now  two  maidens  advance  gaudily  dressed  in  garments  worked  with 
beads  and  elk-teeth,  and  cut  down  the  tree  and  trim  it.  It  is  then 
carried  by  the  sub-chiefs  and  head  men  a  short  distance  toward  the 
village,  handling  it  with  cords  and  refraining  as  much  as  possible  from 
touching  it  with  their  hands.  In  this  way  it  is  carried  to  the  village, 
many  halts  being  made  for  refreshment,  at  each  of  which  the  God  in 
the  sun  is  supplicated  through  a  peculiar  mode  of  smoking.  At  the 
last  halt  before  entering  the  village,  the  warriors  form  in  line  and 
charge  swiftly,  with  shouts  and  firing  of  guns,  for  the  center  of  the 
space  enclosed  by  the  teepees.  The  object  of  this  was  the  reward  to 
be  obtained  by  the  first  one  who  should  reach  and  strike  the  spot 
where  the  Sun  Dance  pole  was  to  be  placed ;  for,  he  it  was  who  should 
count  as  his  own  the  first  scalp  of  the  first  war  party  going  thence 
upon  the  war  path,  and  should  likewise  bear  a  charmed  life  in 
battle. 

On  arriving  at  the  spot  the  pole  is  laid  on  the  ground  and  all 
repair  to  the  dodges  for  a  feast,  save  those  who  are  to  dance  the  Sun 
dance.  They  must  fast  tUl  all  is  ended,  and  include  those  who  have 
made  vows  during  the  year  and  those  who  agree  to  mutilate  them- 
selves— exhibit  their  courage  and  their  power  to  endure  bodily  suffer- 
ing.    This  ends  the  proceedings  of  the  first  day. 

The  second  day  is  devoted  to  planting  the  pole,  making  a  circular 
inclosure  around  it  and  fastening  the  "medicine  bag "  and  lariat  to 
the  forks  of  the  pole. 

On  the  morning  of  the  third  day  a  number  of  little  Indian  babies 
are  brought  and  laid  at  the  foot  of  the  pole,  and  amid  their  screams 
their  ears  are  pierced  with  a  knife  by  the  Medicine  Man. 

Those  who  are  to  dance  are  entirely  naked,  with  the  exception  of 
a  breech-clout.  They  have  each  an  attendant  who  paints  him,  fills 
his  pipe,  rubs  the  palms  of  his  hands  with  sage  and  other  green  herbs, 


540  ECHOES    FBOM    THE     ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

and  all  the  while  speaks  encouraging  words  to  him.  Faint  and  weak 
from  long  fasting  and  the  fear  of  the  horrible  torture  thus  begun, 
thev  stand  at  the  foot  of  the  pole,  while  feasting  and  merriment  sur- 
round them  on  all  sides.  The  circular  shed  is  filled  with  the  tribe,  and 
huge  kettles  of  food  abound.  A  little  before  the  cruel  part  of  the 
ceremony  begins  the  female  kinsfolk  of  the  dancers  —  their  wives, 
sisters  and  sweethearts,  approach  them  singing  their  wild  strains  of 
Indian  song,  and  offering  their  arms  to  be  gashed  by  the  knives  of  the 
Medicine  Men,  thus  endeavoring  to  support  with  their  own  suffering 
the  pains  and  torture  of  their  friends  and  kinsfolk.  At  this  point  one 
of  the  dancers  lays  his  head  near  the  foot  of  the  Sun  Dance  pole,  and 
two  holes  are  cut  in  the  muscles  of  his  chest  through  which  two 
sticks  are  thrust,  to  each  of  which  a  strong  cord  is  fastened.  The 
victim  is  then  lifted  up  and  the  cords  are  fastened  to  the  lariat  hang- 
ing from  the  pole.  All  of  these  proceedings  are  quite  similar  to  those 
of  the  bull  dance  of  the  Gros  Ventres,  previously  described. 

He  now  blows  on  a  whistle  made  of  the  bone  of  an  eagle's  wing, 
viewing  the  sun  and  its  course  from  its  rising  to  its  setting,  dancing, 
whistling,  praying  and  supplicating,  until  he  can,  by  his  violent 
efforts,  free  himself  by  tearing  out  the  flesh  and  muscles  of  his  breast. 
Sometimes  strings  are  tied  to  the  muscles  of  his  back  and  buffalo 
skulls  are  fastened  to  them.  All  of  this  pain  and  self-torture  is  borne 
in  the  main  without  flinching,  but  very  frequently  they  faint  from 
exhaustion,  which  is  of  course  nature's  relief  from  torture.  Sometimes 
the  tough  sinews  refuse  to  yield,  and  then  they  must  lie  away  in  some 
secluded  spot  out  of  the  sight  of  the  tribe  until  the  gashed  muscles  rot 
off  and  the  cords  are  loosened. 

Of  course  these  are  but  the  brief  details  of  this  cruel  proceeding. 
To  the  Indian  its  rites  are  of  the  loftiest  signification — its  ceremonials 
the  highest  form  of  their  mysterious  religion.  The  enclosure  represents 
to  the  Indian  mind  the  church  of  the  civilized;  the  grass  and  sage  and 
herb  and  wild-clematis  their  grandmother  the  Earth  ;  and  a  cross  at 
the  foot  of  the  pole  the  sun  and  stars.  Thus  are  blended  the  heavens 
and  the  earth  and  the  religious'fervor  of  the  wild  savage  nature  in  a 
ceremony  revolting  to  the  civilized  and  Christian  mind,  but  yet  par- 
taking of  the  most  reverential  forms  of  their  own  rehgious  zeal. 

As  remarked,  the  Sun  Dance  of  the  Sioux  resembles  in  many 
points  the  Bull  dance  of  the  Gros  Ventres.     The  Shoshones  term  it  the 


ICnOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


541 


"Dry  Dance."  The  Comanches  have  a  dance  similar  in  character, 
but  not  called  "  Sun  Dance."  The  Poncas  have  a  Sun  Dance  like 
the  Sioux,  and  the  Mez  Perces  soraethimg  of  the  same  kind,  but 
always  performed  in  winter. 

It  has  been  said  by  those  most  conversant  with  the  life  of  the  Indian 
tribes  of  the  plains,  that  taken  all  in  all,  the  wolf,  appears  of  all  animals 


|l|||l[|||!piiilli(iniNiiiiiiiimiiii]iiniiiiiiiinii!iiiiiliimit!liiih!iiiiiii!'iiiiiiiiniiiiiniMiiii[iiiii!iiiiii|iiiim'iiii™i!^^ 


INDIAN  BRAVE  GRADUATING  BY  SELF  TORTURE. 

to  furnish  their  most  perfect  type.  The  Tonka  was,  one  of  these  tribes, 
appear  not  only  to  recognize  the  resemblance,  but  also  to  accept  these 
animals  as  in  some  way  connected  with  their  remote  ancestrial  progen- 
itors. One  of  these  ceremonies,  the  "  Wolf  Dance,"  resembles  the 
"  Mysterious  rites  "  of  the  ancient  Greeks  and  Romans,  and  is  held  to 
be  of  such  sacred  origin  that  no  one  not  connected  bv  birth  with  the 


542  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTaIKS. 

tribe  is  ever  permitted  to  view  the  ceremony.  General  R.  B.  Marcy 
formerl}'^  Inspector-General  of  the  United  States  armj^  whose  early 
life  in  the  military  service,  a  period  of  thirty  years,  was  spent  almost 
exclusively  near  these  tribes,  relates  that  perhaps  the  only  white  man 
who  was  ever  permitted  to  \vitness  the  Wolf  Dance  was  Major 
Ifeighbors,  an  Indian  agent,  who  had  acquired  the  especial  favor  of 
the  chief  of  the  tribe,  who  introduced  him  secretly  into  the  lodge 
.  where  the  ceremony  was  to  be  performed  and  placed  him  in  a  position 
where  he  could  witness  everything  without  himself  being  seen.  He 
relates  that  the  ceremony  is  performed  with  the  utmost  solemnity"  and 
pomp  that  their  limited  means  will  permit. 

After  the  assembly  of  the  tribe  and  the  execution  of  the  preUmi- 
nary  proceedings,  about  fifty  warriors  aU  dressed  in  wolfskins  from 
head  to  foot  so  as  to  represent  the  animal  very  perfectly,  make  their 
appearance  upon  all  fours,  entering  the  lodge  in  single  file  and  passing 
around,  howling,  growling,  and  making  other  demonstrations  peculiar 
to  that  carniverous  beast.  Continuing  this  for  some  time  thev  beoin 
to  place  their  noses  to  the  ground  and  sniff  the  earth  in  every  direc- 
tion, until  at  length  one  of  them  stops  suddenly,  utters  a  shrill  cr3'  and 
scratches  the  ground  at  a  particular  spot.  The  others  immediately 
gather  around,  and  all  set  to  work  scratching  up  the  ground  with  their 
hands,  imitating  the  motions  of  the  wolf  in  so  doing,  and  in  a  few 
moments  exhuming  from  the  earth  a  genuine  live  Tonkawa,  who  had 
previously  been  interred  for  the  ceremony. 

As  soon  as  they  unearth  this  strange  biped,  they  run  around 
scenting  his  person  and  examining  him  throughout  with  the  greatest 
apparent  dehght  and  curiosit}'.  The  advent  of  this  curious  and  novel 
creature  is  an  occasion  of  no  ordinary  moment  to  them,  and  a  council 
of  venerable  and  sage  old  wolves  is  at  once  assembled  to  determine 
what  disposition  shall  be  made  of  him.  The  resurrected  Tonkawa 
thereupon  addresses  them  in  his  own  language  as  follows :  "  You  have 
taken  me  away  from  the  spirit-land  where  I  was  contented  and  happy, 
and  have  brought  me  into  this  world  where  I  am  a  stranger,  and  I 
know  not  what  I  shall  do  for  subsistence  and  clothing.  It  is  better 
vou  should  place  me  back  where  you  found  me,  otherwise  I  shall 
freeze  or  starve  to  death." 

After  mature  deliberation,  the  council  declines  to  return  him  to 
the  earth,  and  advises  him  to  gain  a  livelihood  as  do  the  wolves.     To 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  5i3 

go  out  into  the  wilderness  to  rob,  kill  and  steal  whenever  and  wherever 
tlie  opportunity  presents. 

A  bow  and  arrow  is  then  placed  in  his  hands  and  he  is  told  that 
with  them  he  must  -furnish  himself  with  food  and  clothing ;  that  he 
must  wander  from  place  to  place  like  the  wolves,  never  build  a  house 
or  cultivate  the  soil,  and  that  if  he  disobeys  their  commands  he  will 
surely  die.  And  this  injunction,  the  chief  afterward  informed  the 
agent  the  tribe  obey  with  unchangeable  devotion.  Thus  do  these  sav- 
age tribes  maintain  their  ancient  traditions  and  to  the  remotest  poster- 
ity are  handed  down  the  customs,  rites  and  ceremonies  performed  by 
their  ancestry  before  the  white  man  had  found  a  lodgment  upon  the 
soil  of  the  new  world. 

In  the  Kortheastern  part  of  Arizona  Territory  there  dwells  a 
remarkable  tribe  of  Indians  called  the  Moquis,  who  practice  a  curious 
and  horrible  religious  ceremony  called  the  "  Snake  Dance. "  The  iden- 
tity of  this  strange  race  has  been  preserved  since  theirdiscovery  by  the 
Spanish  Catholic  missionaries  in  1536.  As  far  as  known  but  one  white 
man  has  ever  been  permitted  to  witness  tliis  singular  and  revolting 
ceremony.  He  was  an  officer  in  the  United  States  army,  John  G. 
Bourke,  first  heutenant  of  the  Third  Cavalry,  who,  having  been  assigned 
to  the  duty  of  investigating  certain  Indian  tribes  in  that  remote  section, 
chanced  to  be  present  with  that  tribe  when  the  preparations  were 
made  for  this  religious  ceremony,  and  was  permitted  to  view  its  curious 
rites. 

This  particular  ceremony  was  a  prayer  for  rain.  A  great  drought 
had  settled  throughout  their  domain  and  blighted  the  corn  crops  of 
every  Moqui  colony.  As  this  was  the  principal  staple  of  their  food, 
starvation  would  follow  unless  the  clouds  could  be  induced  to  rain  their 
waters  upon  the  parched  and  burning  lands.  Although  permitted  to 
view  theceremon}',  the  officer  was  prevented  from  accompanying  the 
natives  in  their  search  for  the  poisonous  reptiles  with  which  they  per- 
formed their  revolting  rites,  l^evertheless  he  witnessed  the  means  of 
their  capture  and  was  made  acquainted  with  their  mode  of  operation. 
The  young  and  old  of  the  tribe,  which  had  been  gathered  together  to 
participate  in  the  ceremony,  were  provided  with  hoes,  horse-hair, 
ropes  and  eagle  feathers.  Their  mode  of  pursuit  and  capture  of  the 
reptiles  was,  to  trail  tliem  over  the  sand  until  overtaken  and  surprised. 
Should  they  attempt  to  escape  into  the  ground  the  hoe  was  dextrously 


544  ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKT    MOUKTAINS. 

employed  in  pulling  them  out.  If  they  resisted  or  were  disposed  to 
battle  with  their  pursuers  they  were  pestered  with  the  eagle  feathers 
until  lassoed  with  the  horsehair  ropes,  and  once-'secured  were  swiftly 
dumped  into  a  bag  along  with  those  already  captured,  in  custody  of  a 
boy  who  carried  the  game  on  his  shoulder.  Of  course  their  object 
was  to  secure  the  snakes  alive  and  unharmed,  for  a  dead  or  wounded 
reptile  would  be  of  no  service  in  the  religious  rites  that  would  soon 
follow.  I^or  were  their  lives  taken  or  their  freedom  curtailed  in  the  least 
after  the  ceremony.  When  the  last  rite  had  been  performed  and  the 
final  invocation  uttered,  the  snak^  were  seized  by  young  men  by  the 
armful,  who,  running  with  them  to  an  open  space,  Uberated  them  and 
watched  them  closely  until  all  had  disappeared  in  different  directions. 

When  every  detail  of  preparation  had  been  made  and  all  was 
ready  for  the  ceremony  to  begin,  the  tribe  was  assembled  by  the 
beating  of  their  drums,  and  each  Moqui  took  his  allotted  place  in  a 
long  procession  divided  into  two  parts,  one  of  the  choristers  and  gourd 
rattlers,  the  other  of  men  and  children,  twenty -four  of  whom  carried 
snakes  which  were  fanned  by  attendants  with  eagle  feathers — the 
horrid  reptiles  being  borne  in  both  their  hands  and  mouths.  The  men 
were  all  naked  and  it  was  a  loathsome  sight  to  see  a  long  file  of  unclad 
men  thus  carrying  the  sinuous,  tortuous  reptiles  between  their  teeth, 
tramping  around  a  long  circle  to  the  accompaniment  of  a  sorrowful 
funeral  dirge  of  rattles  and  monotonous  chanting.  After  a  snake  had 
thus  been  carried  around  the  circle  it  was  deposited  in  a  sacred  lodge 
of  Cottonwood  saplings  covered  with  a  buffalo  robe,  and  its  place  taken 
by  another.  Thus  it  was  not  hard  to  calculate  the  number  used  which 
amounted  to  over  one  hundred,  more  than  one-half  of  which  were 
deadly  rattlesnakes. 

The  accompanying  diagram,  drawn  by  the  officer  during  the 
progress  of  the  ceremonies,  fully  explains  the  whole  situation. 

The  procession  entered  through  an  Arcade  at  G  G,  marching  in 
the  line  of  the  arrowheads  four  times  around  a  great  circle,  embracing 
both  the  sacred  lodge  and  the  sacred  rock  and  thus  formed  in  two 
single  ranks;  the  choristers  at  C,  facing  toward  the  precipice,  and  the 
dancers  along  line  D,  facing  the  sacred  lodge.  The  "  high  priest,"  as 
called  by  the  officer,  took  his  station  at  I,  directly  in  front  of  the  sacred 
lodge  and  between  it  and  the  sacred  rock,  which  was  a  grim-looking 
pile  of  weather-worn  sandstone,  thirty  feet  in  height  resembhng  in  a 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 


545 


-   ■'- —          -  '  '■■'                     1 

G 

~ 

G 

G 

•             •  • 
• 
•                     •• 

*    ■■  VI 

/     •* 

•         /                                                     \ 
•         /                                              \          •• 

•'      /                        \   ^-^ 

•  \ 

•  B 

>                                                                            1            •• 

i 
t                     \                                                       / •  •        •• 

\                                                    If* 

•  \                                                 /••••*-' 

•  \                                              / 

•  \                                           /        ••         •• 
•                      \                                       / 

•  \                                 /             ••         •• 

•                      \^                          y 
•                         ^v..,,^^^     ^^^,^                     •  •          ••  • 

• 
•                                                                       •  •          •• 
• 
•                                                                   •  •          •• 

.•r 

-^ 

"              « 

< 

t 

— 

• / 

a 

A  Sacred  Lodge.       B  Sacred  Rock.      C  Choristers.     D  Snake-Dancers. 

E  Circle,  to  be  spoken  of  hereafter.         F  Crest  of  Precipice 

600  feet  high.      G  Line  of  houses.      S  Line  of  20 

squaws  (corn-throwers).       I  High  Priest 

slight  degree  a  human  head.  At  its  foot  was  a  niche  in  which  was  a 
piece  of  black  stone  rudely  carved  in  the  form  of  a  human  trunk,  but 
of  vague  appearance  to  that  essential  part  of  the  human  frame.  At 
the  base  of  this  idol  was  a  profusion  of  votive  offerings  to  propitiate  the 
deity  to  send  abundant  rain  to  re\'ivif3'-  the  parched  corn  and  fructify 
tlie  baked  soil. 

As  the  procession  filed  around  the  little  plaza  the  "  high  priest " 
sprinkled  the  ground  with  water  trom  an  earthen  bowl,  using  an 
eagle's  feather  as  a  sprinkler.  A  second  medicine  man  now  approached 
and  swiftly  twirled  a  peculiar  sling  producing  a  sound  similar  to  that 
of  falling  rain.     Upon  the  halting  of  the  two  lines  which  were  made 


546  ECHOES  FROM  THE  KOCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

to  face  each  other,  the  dancers,  provided  with  eagle  feathers,  waved 
them  gently  downward  to  right  and  left,  while  the  choristers  shook 
their  rattles,  making  a  noise  like  that  of  a  rattlfesnake,  singing  at  the 
same  time  a  low  and  not  unmusical  chant.  When  this  was  finished 
the  "  high  priest "  held  the  bowl  toward  the  sacred  lodge,  uttering  in 
a  low  but  audible  voice,  a  beseeching  prayer,  and  again  sprinkled  tlie 
earth  with  water.  The  chanting  by  the  choristers  and  the  waving 
of  feathers  were  again  repeated  and  closed  the  first  act  of  the  ceremony. 

Nothing  at  all  revolting  as  yet  occurred.  Xo  time,  however,  was 
lost  before  commencing  the  second  act  of  the  ceremony.  The  chor- 
isters remained  in  their  places  while  the  dancers,  arm  in  arm,  and  two 
by  two  tramped  with  measured  tread  in  a  long  circle  embracing  the 
sacred  points  alreadv'  mentioned.  The  blood  of  a  white  man  would 
chill  at  the  sight  of  wriggling  and  writhing  snakes  of  all  kinds  held 
fast  in  mouth  and  hand  by  those  on  the  left,  while  the  right  hand  men 
kept  the  reptiles  distracted  by  fanning  their  heads  with  eagle  feathers. 
Some  of  these  rattlesnakes  were  of  such  size  that  the  dancers  could 
not  grasp  their  whole  diameters  in  their  mouths.  At  S  the  squaws 
were  seated,  and  as  the  procession  filed  past  them  the  women  threw 
cornmeal  before  them  on  the  ground.  The  snakes  when  thrown  to 
the  ground  proved  in  most  cases  to  be  extremely  vicious  and  struck 
violently  at  any  one  coming  within  reach.  In  some  cases  a  little  corn 
meal  was  thrown  upon  them,  and  the  assistants  running  up  fanned 
them  vigorously  with  their  eagle  feathers  until  they  coiled  up  and 
then  were  quickly  siezed  at  the  back  of  the  head. 

After  all  the  snakes  had  been  placed  under  the  buffalo  robe  covering 
the  sacred  lodge,  another  prayer  was  offered  and  the  second  act  enped. 

The  third  and  last  act  began  almost  immediately.  The  snakes 
were  seized  by  one's,  two's  and  half  a  dozen's  and  thrown  into  the 
circle  at  E,  where  they  were  all  covered  over  with  cornmeal.  At  a 
given  signal  a  band  of  the  fleetest  3'oung  men  of  the  tribe  grabbed  the 
snakes  by  handfuls  and  ran  at  full  speed  down  the  almost  vertical 
paths  in  the  face  of  the  mesa  and,  upon  reaching  its  foot,  scattered 
them  to  the  north,  south,  east  and  west.  Then  darting  back  at  full 
speed  they  ran  through  the  crowd  and  on  to  one  of  the  estufas  where 
they  were  compelled  to  swallow  a  bitter  draught  to  induce  copious 
vomiting,  and  to  undergo  other  treatment  to  neutralize  the  poison  from 
any  venomous  bite  they  may  have  received. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  647 

These  snakes  were  not  rendered  harmless  in  any  way  before  the 
ceremony  began.  It  would  have  destroyed  the  propitiatory  power,  and 
rendered  them  useless  as  the  chief  part  of  the  horrid  rites.  The  old 
men  of  the  tribe,  however,  who  were  compelled  to  carelessly  handle 
them,  were  placed  under  the  influence  of  a  narcotic  strong  and  power- 
ful in  its  effects,  but  the  nature  of  which  the  officer  was  unable  to  learn. 
That  secret  they  would  not  divulge.  Of  one  thing  he  was  assured ; 
no  Asiatic  snake  charmer  or  any  other  people  on  earth  could  compare 
with  the  Moquis  in  knowledge  and  skill  in  charming  and  handling  at 
will  these  reptiles.  He  was  both  astonished  and  delighted  in  not  being 
repelled  when  attempting  to  enter  their  estufas  or  temple  of  their  god. 
He  not  only  entered,  but  was  permitted  to  remair  until  he  had  com- 
pleted rough  sketches  and  written  accurate  descriptions  of  aU  he 
beheld.  In  one  corner  was  an  altar  behind  which  was  a  loathsome 
steaming  mass  of  not  less  than  one  hundred  snakes  of  all  varieties, 
carefully  guarded  by  two  old  men  of  the  tribe,  under  the  influence  of 
the  narcotic.  In  front  of  the  altar  was  a  covered  earthenware  basin. 
By  permission  he  withdrew  the  cover  and  found  that  the  vessel  con- 
tained four  sea-shells  and  the  liquid  of  unknown  composition  of  which 
those  who  handled  the  snakes  drank  freely.  Surroundirig  the  altar 
was  a  double  and  triple  line  of  ancient  stone  implements,  axes,  ham- 
mers, war  hatchets,  adzes  and  other  things  of  like  character,  and  in  the 
center  of  the  estufa,  half  a  dozen  or  more  of  the  ancient  earthenware 
pipes,  unused  save  upon  occasions  similar  to  the  present. 

Such  was  the  Snake  Dance  of  the  ancient  Moquis  tribe  of  Indians, 
among  whom  the  Spanish  missionaries  labored  three  centuries  ago. 
How  these  tribes  still  cling  to  their  ancient  traditions  may  well  be 
attested  by  the  faithful  observance  of  the  same  religious  rites  and 
ceremonies  practiced  by  their  ancestry  centuries  since.  Contact  with 
civilization  and  intercourse  with  a  superior  race  does  not  appear  to 
make  any  inroad  upon  their  faith.  One  ignorant  of  Indian  character 
would  scarcely  believe  that  such  a  sight  could  be  witnessed  at  this  day 
anywhere  in  our  country,  where  our  great  railroads  have  carried 
the  tide  of  civilization  nearly  to  their  doors.  But  such  it  is,  and  such 
it  will  remain  as  long  as  the  Indian  retains  his  copper  color. 

But  the  gods  were  propitiated,  and,  as  an  exemplification  of  their 
faith  and  reward  for  their  devotion,  the  officer  relates  that  but  two 
days  afterward  the  storm-cloud  gathered  and  burst  upon  the  Moquis 
and  fields  of  corn  in  a  perfect  deluge  of  rain. 


548 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 


It  is  useless  to  say  that  the  rain  would  have  fallen  without  the 
snakes  and  the  dance  and  the  votive  offerings  to  their  idols.  To  the 
superstitious  mind  of  the  savage  it  was  their  dirges  and  solemn  chants 
and  prayers  to  their  god  that  sent  the  rain  to  revivify  the  eartb .  His 
anger  was  appeased,  and  with  his  approving  smiles  came  the  rain 
to  fall  in  copious  showers  upon  their  golden  com.  All  the  Spanish 
missionaries  in  the  world  could  not  change  their  belief,  nor  all  the 
civilizing  influences  of  the  white  man,  who  has  invaded  their  country 

with    his    railroads,   tele- 

—  —  — —      — —5       graphs  and  hordes  of  gold- 

j  seekers.  They  will,  while 
the}"  live,  continue  to  pray 
to  their  idol  for  the  rain 
and  gash  their  bodies  in 
atonement  for  a  wrong,  to 
appease  the  anger  of  their 
god.  And  if  they  can  ob- 
tain it  in  that  or  any  other 
way,  who  can  blame  them 
in  such  a  land  as  Arizona, 
where  the  sun's  rays  are 
hotter  than  the  flames  of 
sheol ;  for  is  it  not  recorded 
and  believed  by  all  who 
have  dwelt  beneath  its 
burning  skies  that  a  wick- 
ed miner,  who  had  long 
lived  in  that  land,  died 
one  day,  and,  having  gone 
straight  to  hades^  found 
the  change  of  temperature 
so  sudden  as  to  chill  his 
marrow,  and  so  he  sent  at 
once  by  the  fii-st  messenger  to  his  former  abode  for  the  cast-off  blank- 
ets which  had  been  left  behind. 

Kattlesnakes  may  be  good  for  invoking  rain  for  the  Moquis' 
blighted  cornfields,  but  on  the  broad,  wide  prairie  they  have  performed 
other  uses.     They  have  slain  their  arch-enemy;  for,  be  it  remembered, 


AN  INDIAN  ATONEMENT. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAI]S'S.  549 

that  all  Indian  tribes  are  not  snake-charmers  like  the  Moquis,  but 
snake-killers  who  count  their  trophies  of  its  rattles  as  they  do  the 
scalps  of  men  and  long,  black  hair  of  women  worn  at  their  belt. 

!Now  that  you  have  heard  how  the  Moquis  charmed  the  rattle- 
snake, come,  listen  to  this  story  of  "  Night  on  the  Plains,"  where  the 
rattlesnake  charmed  the  savage  into  a  dreamless  sleep.  Perhaps  3'ou 
will  read  it  with  the  same  emotion  that  stirred  my  nature  when  first  I 
heard  its  glowing  periods. 

Stand  in  thought  upon  the  broad,  still  stretch  of  even  land  that 
lies  as  boundless  as  the  smooth,  unbroken  sea  and  peer  through  the 
darkness !  You  can  see  it  all.  There  is  the  wagon  of  the  lone 
emigrant  on  his  way  to  distant  fields  bej'-ond  the  setting  sun,  its  cover 
weatherworn  with  rnany  rents  to  prove  the  journey  has  been  long  nnd 
weary.  Ten  feet  away  are  the  embers  of  the  fire  which  prepared  their 
evening  meal.  Between  the  wagon  and  the  fire  is  the  rude  bed  of 
robes  and  blankets  on  which  mother  and  children  are  sleeping.  On 
the  other  side  of  the  wagon  are  the  horses,  nipping  the  buffalo  grass  or 
listening  to  the  far-off  wailing  voice  of  the  hungry  wolf.  That  is  the 
background.  In  the  foreground  sits  a  sentinel  with  his  back  to  the 
solitary  cottonwoods.  At  his  right  hand  runs  a  little  brook,  at  his  left 
the  boundless  prairie,  over  which  night  hath  spread  her  mantle.  Forty 
feet  away  are  wife  and  children,  deep  in  the  first  sweet  slumber  after  a 
weary  day,  trusting  in  his  vigilance.  Overhead  gray-white  clouds  are 
driving  across  the  starlit  heavens,  and  the  moan  of  the  wind  has  an 
uneasy,  nervous  sound.  Away  out  on  the  prairie  the  wolf  gallops 
from  knoll  to  knoll  and  snuffs  the  air,  and  the  coyote  gnaws  at  the 
bleached  bones  of  an  animal  and  utters  his  short,  sharp  cries  of 
hunger. 

Is  there  danger?  All  day  long  as  the  tired  horses  pulled  the  wagon 
at  a  slow  pace,  the  emigrant  has  carefully  scanned  the  broad  circle 
about  him  without  cause  of  uneasiness.  But  he  knows  lie  is  in  the 
Indian  country,  and  for  the  last  twenty-four  hours  his  nerves  have 
been  braced  to  hear  their  dreaded  war-whoop  and  to  catch  sight  of  a 
band  riding  down  on  him. 

It  is  midnight  as  we  find  him.  His  ear  has  been  as  keen  as  a  fox's 
and  his  eye  lias  not  rested  for  a  moment.  The  stakes  are  human  lives, 
his  own  with  the  rest.  The  odds  are  ten  to  one  against  him.  The 
brook  babbled  and  the  man  slept.     Ay,  overcome  at  last,  the  sentinel 


550  ECHOES    FROM    THE    fiOCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

who  had  five  lives  in  his  keeping  slept  and  dreamed,  and  in  his  dreams 
wandered  back  to  the  old  home  and  heard  the  old  famihar  sounds. 

Sh!  It  was  a  rustle  in  the  grass !  Turn  to 'the  left  a  little  more. 
There  it  is!  Thirty  feet  from  the  sleeping  man,  seventy  feet  from 
sleeping  wife  and  children,  a  rattlesnake  rears  its  head  above  the 
grass  and  looks  around.  Its  eyes  gleam  like  stars.  The  neck  swells, 
the  tongue  flashes  in  and  out,  and  it  coils  and  uncoils  itself  as  if  in 
fierce  combat.  Xow  it  is  advancing.  Now  it  swerves  to  the  right, 
now  to  the  left ;  now  it  halts  and  coils  itself  to  strike.  It  might  creep 
up  and  bury  its  fangs  in  the  flesh  of  the  sleeping  man,  and  it  will !  It 
creeps  again.  It  glides  through  the  grass  like  a  gleam,  now  to  the 
right,  now  to  the  left,  now  straight  ahead. 

''S-s-s-h!" 

The  serpent  halts.  Ten  feet  more  and  it  would  have  struck  the 
sleeper,  but  some  movements  of  his,  perhaps  the  soft  touch  of  a  guard- 
ian angel,  who  has  been  sentineling  the  sleeping  watcher  that  stirred 
his  dream,  has  alarmed  it,  and  it  glides  awa}'  for  fifty  feet  as  fast  as  a 
shadow  travels.  Now,  look  beyond  the  snake.  It  is  a  second  serpent 
worming  its  way  over  the  ground  to  surround  the  sleeper  with  peril. 
It  follows  in  the  hot  trail  of  the  other,  but  it  is  not  so  generous  a  foe. 
Its  stroke  is  covert,  it  never  gives  a  warning  I  Is  it  wolf  or  panther 
creeping  forward  to  make  a  victim  ?    Now  you  can  see  more  clearly. 

A  rift  in  the  clouds  has  broken  and  the  silver  shines  for  an  instant 
on  the  trailing  form.  There  is  the  scalplock  and  feathers,  the  dark 
face,  the  gleaming  eyes,  the  shut  teeth  and  bronze  throat  of  a  Black- 
foot  warrior.  A  courier  from  one  branch  of  his  tribe  to  another,  he  has 
discovered  the  encampment,  circled  twice  around  it,  and  now  is  creep- 
ing upon  the  man  who  sleeps  instead  of  watching. 

How  softl}'  he  moves !  A  panther  stealing  upon  a  listening  doe 
would  not  move  more  noiselessly.  Almost  inch  by  inch,  and  yet  he  is 
slowly  approaching.  He  was  a  hundred  feet  away,  now  he  is  ninety, 
eighty,  seventy,  sixty  !  He  can  see  a  dark  mass  at  the  foot  of  the 
tree,  and  he  knows  the  sentinel  is  sleeping  or  he  would  not  be  in  that 
position. 

See  the  rattlesnake !  It  has  faced  about.  If  it  was  daylight  you 
could  see  a  fierce  gleam  in  its  angry  eyes — ^a  tightening  of  the  cords 
and  muscles — a  fierce  flash  of  the  red  tongue.  A  straight  line  drawn 
from  the  creeping  Indian  to  the  tree  would  pass  directly  over    the 


•BLACK  "FDOT  '  SCOVT  • 

filTTE,M     BV  A  -RATTLE.SNAKE.. 


THE  FATHER  GUARDING  HIS  FAMILY. 
651 


ECHOES   FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  553 

snake.  Now  the  warrior  moves  softly  forward  again,  not  a  weed 
breaking,  not  a  rustle  to  prove  his  presence.  Two  feet — four — six ! 
See  the  snake !  Its  head  is  thrown  back — its  eyes  shoot  sparks — 
there  goes  the  deadly  z-z-z-z-z  of  his  rattle.  The  head  of  the  Indian 
is  not  three  feet  away,  as  the  "death-rattle^'  sounds  in  his  ears. 
Instantly  he  draws  back,  but  the  serpent  is  too  quick  for  him — there  is 
a  dart,  a  flash,  and  something  strikes  him  full  in  the  face  and  is  not 
shaken  off  until  he  springs  to  his  feet,  with  aery  heard  by  the  wolves 
full  half  a  mile  away,  and  rushes  forth  into  the  darkness. 

Wliat  was  it  ?  The  sentinel  is  wide  awake  and  upon  his  feet. 
"Wife  and  children  have  been  startled  from  slumber  to  grow  white- 
faced  with  fear.  Even  the  mute  horses  have  raised  their  heads  and 
are  peering  into  the  night.  There  was  a  single  cry,  the  wild  scream 
of  a  human  being  suddenly  terrified. 

"  Oh,  it  was  nothing — nothing  but  the  howl  of  a  wolf !  "  whispers 
the  sentinel  to  himself  as  he  walks  over  to  comfort  wife  and  children, 
and  by  and  by  all  is  quiet  and  peaceful  as  before.  The  night  grows 
apace — the  stars  fade — daylight  breaks.  As  the  sun  comes  up  the 
wagon  moves  on  its  toilsome  way,  and  the  brook,  and  the  camp  and 
the  Cottonwood  are  left  behind. 

"  Yes,  it  Avas  the  howl  of  a  prowling  wolf,"  whispers  the  emigrant 
again  to  himself  as  he  walks  beside  his  wagon  and  cautiously  scans 
the  horizon. 

Three  hundred  feet  to  the  left  is  coiled  a  snake  which  darts  its 
venomous  tongue  at  the  passing  wagon.  A  mile  beyond  lies  the  dead 
body  of  the  Blackfoot,  swollen,  distorted,  a  horrible  sight  under  the 
morning  sun.  Overhead  circle  the  vultures  of  the  plain,  and  creeping 
in  the  daylight  come  the  lank,  hungry  wolves  to  the  feast.  The  wife 
laughs,  the  children  frolic,  the  husband  regains  his  light  heart.  Night 
wrote  the  record  of  the  serpents  in  the  grass,  and  the  emigrant  will 
never  read  it ;  but  an  angel's  hand  traced  likewise :  "  Treachery 
returneth  to  its  master;  and  will  stand  as  do  the  stars  shining  in 
order,  like  a  living  hymn,  written  in  light." 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

THE  WOXDEBS  OF  THE  YKLLOWSTOXE-A  FULL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THEIR  FIKST 
DISCOVERY  AXD  PUBLICATION  TO  THE  WORLD  BY  AN  EXPLORING  PARTY 
FROM  MONTANA. 

Before  the  wonders  of  the  Yellowstone  had  been  unfolded  by  the 
explorations  of  learned  and  scientific  men  who  disclosed  its  marvelous 
grandeur  and  made  it  a  "  Mecca  "  for  the  American  and  foreign  tour- 
ist, it  was  a  land  of  mystery,  known  only  to  the  romancing  trapper 
and  mountaineer  whose  search  for  game  or  gold  led  him  to  invade  its 
silent  depths.  And,  strange  to  relate,  hing  within  a  little  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  of  prosperous  settlements  containing  the  most  courageous 
and  resolute  race  of  men  the  world  has  produced,  and  eager  to  tread 
the  remote  paths  of  solitude  and  unlock  the  mysteries  of  the  "  wonder- 
lands "  of  the  mountains,  the  now  far-famed  region  fast  becoming  the 
most  renowned  of  all  lands  of  wonders,  should  have  for  so  many  years 
remained  a  silent  solitude,  wrapped  in  its  own  mysteries  and  fed  by  its 
own  wonders,  until  discovered  and  made  known  b}'^  nine  citizens  of 
Montana,  who  lifted  the  veil  of  secrecy  and  revealed  its  hidden  glories. 

These  men,  who  tell  their  story  of  adventure  in  Scrihier's 
Monthly  of  May,  1871,  were  the  writer,  Col.  X.  P.  Langford,  coUector 
of  Internal  revenue;  Samuel  T.  Ilauser, President  of  First  Xational 
Bank  of  Helena ;  Hon.  Truman  Everts,  Assessor  of  Internal  revenue ; 
Cornelius  Hedges,  a  member  of  the  bar;  Walter  Trumbull,  Ben 
Stickney,  Jr.,  "Warren  C.  Gillette,  Jacob  Smith,  and  Gen.  H.  D. 
"Washburn,  an  ex-member  of  Congress  from  Indiana  and  Surveyor- 
general  of  Montana  Territory. 

According  to  their  story,  the  preparation  was  simple.  Each  was 
supplied  with  a  strong  horse,  well  equipped  with  California  saddle, 
bridle  and  cantinas.  A  needle-gun,  a  belt  filled  with  cartridges,  a  pair 
of  revolvers,  a  hunting  knife,  added  to  the  usual  garb  of  the  mountains, 
completed  the  personal  outfit  of  each  member  of  the  expedition.  Their 
provisions  consisted  of  bacon,  dried  fruits,  flour,  etc.  I  exjiect  that 
"etc."  covered  a  multitude  of  stores,  liquid  and  otherwise,  and  were 

554 


FALLS  OF  THE  YELLOWSTONE.— (G^o'-r^-.r  of  the  Yellowstone.) 
555 


ECHOES    FIIOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  557 

lashed  securely  to  the  backs  of  twelve  bronchos.  They  also  employed 
two  black  cooks. 

Fort  Elhs  was  reached  in  four  days,  where  they  were  joined  by  a 
guard  consisting  of  an  officer  and  five  soldiers  by  order  of  General 
Hancock,  who  was  anxious  to  learn  something  of  the  country  to  aid 
him  in  military  operations. 

Again  under  way,  they  began  a  tedious  ride  of  several  hours  up 
steep  acclivities,  over  rocks  and  through  dark  defiles,  passing  at  length 
over  the  summit  of  the  mountain  range,  and  taking  a  farewell  look  at 
the  beautiful  vallev  of  the  Gallatin,  thev  descended  into  a  ravine 
coursed  by  the  waters  of  Trail  Creek.  For  two  days  they  followed 
this,  and  reaching  the  Yellowstone,  they  rode  to  the  solitary  ranch  of 
the  Boteler  brothers,  the  outer  edge  of  civilization.  Here  they  were 
regaled  by  those  pioneers  with  the  marvelous  stories  of  the  wonders 
that  lay  just  before  them.  They  were  likewise  informed  by  a  despoiled 
trapper  whom  they  met  on  their  way,  robbed  of  horse  and  outfit,  that 
twenty-five  lodges  of  Crows  had  preceded  them  but  two  days.  They, 
however,  organized  their  force  to  meet  this  emergency,  should  it  arise 
and  elected  General  Washburn  commander  of  the  party.  But  one 
march  should  be  made  daily,  beginning  at  8  a.  m.  and  camping  at  3 
p.  M.  At  night  the  horses  were  carefully  picketed,  watched  by  a  guard 
of  two  men. 

Plunging  into  the  vast  wilderness  that  lay  before  them,  they  fol- 
lowed a  slight  Indian  trail  near  the  bank  of  the  river,  amid  the  wildest 
scenery  of  rock,  river  and  mountain.  The  foothills  were  covered  with 
verdure,  which  an  autumnal  scene  had  sprinkled  with  delicate  maroon- 
colored  tints.  The  narrow-rocky  path  led  over  high  hills,  abrupt  and 
difficult  of  passage.  The  river  was  a  mountain  torrent.  Here  a  band 
of  Indians  was  observed  watching  their  progress,  who,  however,  fled 
on  being:  discovered.  A  hard  and  continuous  rainstorm  which  followed 
may  have  saved  them  that  night  from  an  attack.  The  next  morning 
they  ascended  the  spur  of  a  mountain  and  beheld  the  beautiful  valley 
stretched  before  them  like  a  panorama — the  river  fringed  with  cotton- 
wood,  the  foothills  covered  with  luxuriant  herbage,  and  over  all  the 
snow-crowned  summits  of  the  mountains  rising  up  from  the  broad 
plateau  at  their  feet. 

They  camped  that  night  near  the  lower  canon  of  the  Yellow^stone, 
less  than  a  mile  in  length,  and  not  deeper  than  a  thousand  feet.     But 


558  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

its  walls  are  vertical  and  from  the  summit  of  the  precipice  the  view  is 
beautiful,  as  the  river  forces  its  wav  through  a  narrow  gorge,  surging 
and  boiling  at  a  fearful  rate  and  breaking  into'  myriads  of  prismatic 
drops  against  every  projecting  rock. 

Six  miles  over  the  mountains  above  the  canon  they  descended  into 
a  broad  valley,  where  they  met  an  object  that  claimed  their  fixed 
attention.  Two  parallel  vertical  walls  of  rock  projected  from  the  side 
of  a  mountain  to  the  height  of  125  feet,  traversing  the  mountain  side 
fi-ora  base  to  summit  1,500  feet.  This  they  named  the  Devil's  Slide, 
after  one  of  a  similar  formation  in  Weber  Caiion,  Utah.  The  walls 
were  not  over  thirty  feet  in  thickness,  and  their  tops  were  covered  all 
the  way  with  a  growth  of  pine  trees.  The  sides  were  as  even  as  if  they 
had  been  worked  b}"  a  master-hand  with  line  and  plummet.  It  was, 
however,  the  work  of  the  elements,  and  the  master-hand  of  Nature, 
directing  the  storm  of  wind  and  rain,  had  washed  away  the  huge 
mountain  sides,  leaving  for  unborn  ages,  as  the  evidence  of  their  cease- 
less labors,  these  vertical  projections. 

Crossing  the  stream  the  following  morning,  the}^  passed  over  rocky 
ridges  into  a  valley  crowded  with  the  spires  of  protruding  rocks,  of 
such  a  dismal  as|iect  they  named  it  "  The  Valley  of  Desolation."  Six 
miles  beyond,  just  before  camping  for  the  night,  they  came  upon  fresh 
tracks  of  unshod  ponies,  a  sure  sign  of  proximity  of  Indians.  They 
were  rudely  awakened  from  their  'dreams  that  night  by  one  of  their 
own  horses  breaking  loose  and  rushing  madly  through  their  camp 
which  caused  them  to  seize  their  guns,  beheving  the  Indians  had  made 
a  night  attack. 

From  a  summit  of  the  commanding  range  separating  the  waters  of 
Antelope  and  Tower  Creeks  they  descended  through  a  picturesque 
gorge,  leading  their  horses  to  a  small  stream  flowing  into  the  Yellow- 
stone. Four  miles  of  travel  adown  its  precipitous  slopes  brought  them 
to  the  banks  of  Tower  Creek  and  within  the  volcanic  region  where  the 
real  wonders  began.  Here,  in  a  landscape  of  remarkable  beauty, 
stretched  for  two  miles  along  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Yellowstone 
*' Column  Rock,"  composed  of  successive  pillars  of  basalt  over  and 
underlying  a  thick  stratum  of  cement  and  gravel  resembling  pudding- 
stone.  Both  sides  of  these  pillars,  standing  close  together,  were  all  of 
thirtv  feet  hiffh  and  from  three  to  five  feet  in  diameter. 

Tower  Creek,  falling  perpendicularly  over  a  ledge  112  feet  high, 
forms  one  of  the  most  beautiful  cataracts  of  the  world.     The  scenery 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  559 

surrounding  the  falls  is  beautiful.  Spires  of  solid  shale,  capped  with 
slate,  beautifully  rounded  and  polished  and  faultless  in  symmetry,  raise 
their  tapering  forms  from  80  to  150  feet  all  over  the  plateau.  Towers, 
spires  of  churches  and  minarets  of  mosques  rise  before  you  and  stand 
like  sentinels  upon  the  brink  of  the  falls. 

Among  these  curious  formations  was  a  huge  mass  sixty  feet  high, 
which,  from  its  supposed  resemblance  to  the  proverbial  foot  of  the  evil 
one,  they  called  "  Devil's  Hoof."  They  gave  the  name  of  "  Tower 
Falls  "  to  the  cataract,  having  been  suggested  by  the  most  conspicuous 
features  of  the  scenery. 

The  next  day  they  ascended  a  lofty  peak,  10,580  feet  above  the 
sea  level,  which,  in  honor  of  their  commander,  they  named  Mount 
Washburn.  From  its  summit,  400  feet  above  the  line  of  perpetual 
snow,  they  traced  the  river's  course  to  its  source  in  Yellowstone  Lake. 
Descending  and  following  the  stream  in  the  direction  of  its  mouth,  at 
the  distance  of  a  mile  from  their  camp,  they  crossed  a  bed  of  volcanic 
ashes,  thirty  feet  deep,  extending  100  yards  on  both  sides  of  the  stream. 
A  mile  beyond  they  came  suddenly  upon  a  hideous  glen,  filled  with  the 
vapory  fumes  from  eight  boiling  sulphur  springs.  Cautiously  entering 
the  basin,  they  found  the  entire  surface  covered  with  incrustations 
from  the  springs.  Jets  of  hot  vapor  were  expelled  through  hundreds 
of  natural  orifices  with  which  it  was  pierced,  and  through  every  fracture 
made  by  passing  over  it.  These  springs  were  as  diabolical  in  appear- 
ance as  the  Witches'  Cauldron  in  the  play  of  "  Macbeth,"  and  were  all  in 
a  state  of  violent  ebulition.  A  stick  thrust  into  them,  being  withdrawn, 
was  coated  with  lead-colored  slime  a  quarter  inch  thick.  Others  they 
tried  unsuccessfully  to  fathom,  not  being  able  to  reach  their  bottom 
with  the  longest  poles.  Rocks  cast  into  them  increased  their  violent 
agitation.  The  incrustations  bent  beneath  the  weight  of  the  travelers, 
and  there  oozed  from  their  fractures  a  sulphury  slime  of  the  consistency 
of  paint  or  mucilage. 

There  was  something  so  revolting  in  the  general  aspect  of  the 
springs,  the  foulness  of  their  vapors  and  infernal  contents,  the  treach- 
erous incrustations,  through  which  each  moment  they  might  be  hurled 
into  an  unseen  abyss,  and  the  wild  seclusion  and  general  air  of  desola- 
tion, compelled  them  to  name  them  somewhat  after  their  scriptural 
prototypes,  and  thus  they  christened  them  "  Hell's  Broth  Springs." 
They  had  never  befere,  in  all  probability,  been  viewed  by  a  white  man. 


560  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

They  descended  the  mountain  toward  evening  in  the  vicinit}'  of 
the  Great  Falls  of  the  Yellowstone,  along  the  banks  of  a  beautiful 
rapid  stream  which  they  named  Cascade  Creek,  inasmuch  as  near  the 
foot  of  a  gorge  through  whose  gloomy  recesses  this  stream  passes — the 
stream  breaks  from  fearful  rapids  into  a  cascade  of  great  beauty.  The 
first  fall  is  but  five  feet,  immediately  succeeded  by  another  of  fifteen, 
into  a  pool  as  clear  as  amber,  nestling  beneath  overarching  rocks. 
Here,  lingering  as  if  reluctant  to  take  the  final  leap,  it  gracefully 
emerges  from  the  grotto,  and  veiling  the  rocks  down  an  abrupt  descent 
of  eighty-four  feet,  moves  rapidly  on  to  the  Yellowstone. 

The  Great  Falls  are  at  the  head  of  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
canons  in  the  world,  a  gorge  through  volcanic  rocks,  fifty  miles  long 
and  varying  from  a  thousand  to  five  thousand  feet  in  depth.  In  its 
descent  through  this  wonderful  chasm  the  river  falls  three  thousand 
feet.  At  one  point  where  its  passage  has  been  worn  through  a  mount- 
ain range,  thej'  were  assured  by  their  hunters  that  it  was  more  than  a 
vertical  mile  in  depth,  and  the  river,  brokeu  into  rapids  and  cascade 
appeared  no  wider  than  a  ribbon.  The  dizzy  verge  appalled  them  and 
they  shrank  back  from  its  overhanging  walls  to  the  firm  earth  again. 
The  stillness  was  complete.  Far  down  below,  they  saw  the  river 
attenuated  to  a  thread,  tossing  its  infant  waves  and  dashing  with  puny 
strength  against  its  narrow  prison  walls.  'No  man  could  reach  its 
margin  and  the  dark  gray  rocks  held  it  in  dismal  shadow.  The  voices 
of  its  waters  could  not  be  heard  nor  its  convulsive  throbs,  as  uncheered 
by  plant  or  shrub,  it  rushed  madly  over  huge  rocks  and  bowlders  on  its 
lonely  way  through  the  dark  depths  of  the  rocky  firmanent.  No  wing 
of  bird  or  any  living  thing  broke  the  stillness  that  reigned  over  the 
depths  of  the  awful  chasm. 

They  were  told  by  trappers  that  in  the  vicinity  there  were 
cataracts  1,000  feet  high,  and  they  regretted  when  too  late  that  a 
fuller  exploration  had  not  been  made.  But  they  followed  the  river  to 
the  falls,  and  beheld  in  the  lower  cataract  of  the  Yellowstone  as  grand 
a  scene  as  ever  was  witnessed  by  mortal  eye.  The  harmony  of  the  sur- 
rounding scenery  added  its  glory  to  the  marvelous  vision,  "Where  the 
river  takes  its  plunge  it  is  converged  to  150  feet.  The  shelf  over 
which  it  falls  has  been  worn  as  level  as  a  work  of  art.  The  height  is 
350  feet  by  actual  line  measurement,  save  a  few  inches.  At  this  point 
the  canon  is  1,000  feet  deep,  its  vertical  sides  rising  gray  and   dark 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  561 

above  the  falls  to  shelving  summits,  where  you  look  down  into  the 
boiling  spray-filled  chasm,  glittering  like  diamonds  and  arched  with 
the  glories  of  a  radiant  rainbow.  Below  the  falls  the  river  for  a  mile 
is  broken  by  rapids  and  beautiful  cascades  that  sparkle  in  iridescent 
colors. 

The  upper  fall  does  not  compare  in  grandeur  with  the  lower. 
Nevertheless  it  is  of  great  interest.  The  river  above  it  is  broken,  into 
fearful  rapids,  and  the  stream  narrows  as  it  approaches  the  brink,  and 
bounds  with  impatient  struggles  for  release,  leaping  madly  through  the 
stony  jaws  in  a  sheet  of  silvery  foam  over  a  perpendicular  precipice  115 
feet  high.  Midway  in  its  descent  the  entire  volume  of  water  is 
deflected  by  an  intervening  ledge  fifteen  feet  beyond  the  vertical  base 
of  the  precipice.  Here  the  waters  churn  upon  the  rocks  into  a  mass  of 
foam  and  spray,  through  which  all  the  colors  of  the  solar  spectrum  are 
reproduced  in  wonderful  profusion.  It  is  not  sublime,  but  picturesque. 
All  its  beauty  lies  open  in  the  golden  sunshine  in  the  center  of  a  green 
pine  foliage  that  crowns  the  adjacent  hills. 

For  two  days  they  rambled  around  these  wonders  and  then  passed 
on  to  other  scenes.  The  last  vestige  of  the  rapids  disappeared  half  a 
mile  above  the  upper  fall,  but  the  waters,  like  those  of  Niagara,  were 
of  an  emerald  hue.  A  few  miles  beyond  they  found  themselves  in  a 
region  filled  with  boiUng  springs  and  craters.  Two  mighty  hills,  each 
300  feet  high  and  nearly  half  a  mile  across  their  base,  had  been  formed 
entirely  of  lava,  sulphur  and  reddish-brown  clay  projected  from  the 
adjacent  springs.  They  were  in  a  volcanic  country  whose  fires  were 
burning  when  "Washington  fought  at  Eutaw  and  Trenton — perhaps 
when  Caesar  crossed  the  Eubicon.  They  were  the  first  white  men  to  • 
gaze  upon  these  wonders.  A  great  many  exhausted  craters  dotted 
the  mountain  heights.  One  on  the  summit,  still  alive,  changed  its 
hues  like  steel  under  the  process  of  tempering,  to  every  kiss  of  the 
passing  breeze.  Hot  streams  of  vapor  issued  everywhere  from  the 
fractured  earth.  Its  surface  answered  in  hollow  tones  to  every  foot- 
step and  bent  beneath  their  horses'  weight. 

One  of  these  clusters  of  sulphur  springs  is  twenty  feet  in  diameter, 
encircled  by  a  beautifully-scolloped  sedimentary  border,  on  which  the 
water  is  thrown  to  the  height  of  seven  feet.  The  perfect  shading  of 
the  scollops  forms  one  of  the  most  delicate  and  beautiful  freaks  of 
nature's  handiwork.    A  few  rods  north  of  this  spring  is  a  cavern  at  the 


5(i2  ECHOES     FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIS^S. 

base  of  the  hill,  whose  moath  is  seven  feet  in  diameter,  and  from  which 
a  dense  jet  of  sulphurous  vapor  explodes  with  a  regular  report  like  that 
of  a  high-pressure  engine.  ^ 

A  hundred  yards  distant  they  discovered  a  boiling  alum  spring, 
surrounded  with  beautiful  crystals,  from  the  borders  of  which  thev 
gathered  a  quantity  of  nearly  pure  alum.  Here  the  incrustation  broke 
beneath  the  weight  of  one  of  their  party,  and  he  was  marvelouslv  pre- 
served from  a  horrible  death  in  the  boQing  spring  by  throwing  himself 
suddenly  backward  at  full  length  upon  the  more  solid  parts.  Their 
eflForts  to  sound  the  depths  of  this  spring  with  a  pole  thirty-five  feet  in 
length  were  fruitless. 

They  next  entered  a  basin  containing  thirty  springs  of  boiling  clay 
of  the  consistency  of  thick  paint  and  of  various  colors.  A  day  was 
spent  in  examining  the  wonders  surrounding  them.  At  the  base  of  an 
adjacent  foothiU  they  discovered  three  springs  of  boiling  mud,  and  near 
by  a  cave  from  which  a  small  stream  of  perfectly  transparent  water 
flowed — ^the  water  boiling  at  a  furious  rate  twenty  feet  from  its  mouth. 
Two  hundred  yards  from  the  cave  they  found  the  Muddy  Greyser,  and, 
attracted  by  dull  thundering  sounds  resembling  the  discharges^of  distant 
cannon,  they  came  upon  a  mighty  mud  volcano,  from  which  dense 
volumes  of  steam  shot  into  the  air  with  each  report,  through  a  crater 
thirty  feet  wide.  These  reports  occurred  in  rapid  succession  as  often 
as  every  five  seconds,  and  could  be  distinctly  heard  for  half  a  mile. 
Each  alternate  report  shook  the  earth  for  200  yards,  and  the  massive 
jets  of  vapor  projected  therefrom  burst  forth  like  the  smoke  of  burn- 
ing gunpowder.  This  volcano  they  adjudged  to  be  of  recent  forma- 
tion from  the  freshness  of  surrounding  vegetation  and  the  particles  of 
dried  clay  adhering  to  the  topmost  branches  of  the  trees.  It  may 
not  have  been  more  than  a  few  months  old,  but  its  first  explosion  must 
have  shaken  the  hiUs  for  miles.  They  beheld  limbs  of  trees  125  feet 
high  encased  in  clay  and  its  scattered  contents  200  feet  from  it. 

On  the  following  day  toward  its  close  they  reached  the  banks  of 
Yellowstone  Lake  through  a  timber  passage  of  two  miles  unmarked  b3'  a 
single  traiL  The  silvery  bosom  of  the  lake  reflected  the  beams  of  the 
setting  sun  and  stretched  away  for  miles  until  lost  in  the  dark  foliage 
of  the  vast  wilderness  of  pines  surrounding  it.  Secluded  amid  the 
loftiest  peaks  of  the  Eocky  Mountains  it  lay  in  its  lonely  glory  8.337 
feet  above  the  ocean's  level.    It  was  once,  perhaps,  the  mighty  crater 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 


563 


of  a  huge  volcano,  and  its  shore  lines  bear  testimony  of  the  awful 
upheaval  and  tremendous  power  of  the  elements  that  in  the  frenzy  of 
motion  created  it. 
Islands  of  emerald 
hue  dot  its  surface, 
and  sparkling  sands 
form  its  jeweled  set- 
ting. All  about  it 
mountain  blasts  have 
piled  the  surface  with 
trunks  of  prostrate 
trees.  Along  the 
shore  were  scattered 
curiously-wrought 
objects  of  slate,  vary- 
ing in  size  from  a 
gold  dollar  to  a  loco- 
motive, composing 
water-cups,  discs.long 
pestles,  resemblances 
to  legs  and  feet,  and 
other  objects  which 
the  elements  in  ca- 
pricious mood  had 
scattered  about  this 
watery  solitude.  So 
similar  to  works  of 
art  were  these  con 
figurations  that  they 
had  deceived  the  eye 
of  an  old  trapper, 
who  had  previously 
told  them  they  would 
find  on  the  borders 
of  this  lake  the  drink- 
ing cups,  war  clubs 
and  remains  of  idols  of  an  extinct  race  that  once  peopled  these 
solitudes.     At  another  point  on  the  lake  shore  they  found  where 


THE  MUD  VOLCANO. 


56*  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIlfS. 

the  beach  was  pebbly,  carnelians,  agates  and  chalcedony  in  great 
abundance. 

To  obtain  a  satisfactory  view  of  the  southern  shore  of  the  lake,  two 
of  the  party  climbed  a  lofty  mountain,  its  summit  600  feet  above  the 
line  of  perpetual  snow,  and  11,352  feet  above  the  ocean  level.  The 
grandeur  and  vast  extent  of  the  view  they  found  to  be  beyond  descrip- 
tion. Before  them  they  saw  with  great  distinctness  the  jets  of  the  mud 
volcanoes,  and  far  beyond  them,  stretching  away  into  a  horizon  of 
cloud-defined  mountains,  was  the  entire  Wind  River  Range,  revealing 
in  the  sunlight  its  dark  ravines,  gloomy  canons  and  stupendous  preci- 
pices. Gigantic  spires  shot  up  from  the  main  body,  glittering  in  the 
sunbeams  like  shining  crystal.  Its  central  line  was  broken  into  count- 
less points,  knobs,  glens  and  defiles  of  colossal  grandeur  and  magnifi- 
cence. The  valley  at  its  base  was  split  centrally  by  the  river,  which 
emerged  from  an  immense  canon. 

This  range  of  mountains  possesses  a  marvelous  history.  It  is  the 
loftiest  of  the  Rocky  Range.  The  Indians  call  it  "the  crest  of  the 
world,"  and  maintain  the  legend  that  he  who  reaches  its  summit 
obtains  a  view  of  the  land  of  souls,  where  the  happy  hunting  grounds 
are  spread  with  the  bright  abodes  of  free  and  generous  spirits. 

For  two  days  now  their  journey  was  through  a  forest  piled  with 
fallen  trunks  of  trees  and  their  progress  was  slow  and  weary.  Twice 
they  came  upon  grizzly  bears,  and  in  the  intricate  meshes  of  the  vast 
network  of  branches,  tree-tops  and  trunks,  each  seeking  a  wa}"  of  escape, 
three  of  the  party  became  lost ;  but  happily  two  of  them  found  their 
way  into  camp  that  night.  The  third  never  returned  to  camp.  The 
story  of  his  sufferings  for  37  days  of  continuous  peril  is  told  in  the  suc- 
ceeding chapter. 

Pursuing  their  journey  they  ascended  a  mountain  overlooking  the 
north  and  west  shores  of  the  lake.  Nearly  1,000  feet  above  Yellow- 
stone Lake  they  found  two  small  lakes  nestled  in  a  dark  glen,  com- 
pletely environed  with  huge  masses  of  basalt  and  brown  lava,  thrown 
up  by  some  terrible  convulsion.  The  day  following  the  party  was 
divided  and  a  search  made  in  every  direction  for  their  missing  comrade. 
Notices  were  posted  on  trees  and  caches  of  food  made  at  various 
}X)ints.  Two  of  the  searching  parties  returned  early  to  the  camp, 
having  been  intercepted  by  Indians.  The  other  parties  likewise 
returned  after  a  fruitless  search  of  two  days,  having  visited  aU  the 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  565 

camps  of  the  six  preceding  days.  For  three  days  longer  they  continued 
the  search  for  their  lost  comrade,  but  in  vain.  On  full  consultation 
they  came  to  the  conclusion  that  he  had  either  been  shot  from  his 
horse  by  an  Indian,  or  had  returned  down  the  Yellowstone,  or  struck 
out  upon  some  of  the  head  waters  of  Snake  River,  with  the  intention  of 
following  it  to  the  settlements.  A  heavy  fall  of  snow  for  two  days 
kept  them  confined  to  the  shelter  of  their  camp.  As  soon  as  the 
weather  cleared  they  made  a  circuit  around  the  head  of  the  inlet  to 
150  springs,  differing  from  any  hitherto  seen.  The  hues  of  their 
streaming  sprays  varied  from  whity-chalk  to  a  delicate  lavender,  that 
of  a  brilliant  pink  color,  and  others  of  pure  ultra-marine.  This  group 
of  springs  is  distinguished  by  the  fashion  of  their  overflow  into  a  con- 
crete bank  of  commingled  tufa  eight  feet  high  and  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
in  length  on  the  margin  of  a  lake.  The  waves  have  worn  this  bank 
into  large  caverns  which  respond  in  hollow  murmurs  to  their  fierce 
assaults.  For  five  days  they  remained  in  this  vicinity  in  the  vain  hope 
of  finding  their  missing  friend.  But  now  their  provisions  were  rapidly 
diminishing,  and  a  longer  stay  promised  unfavorable  results.  The 
force  of  circumstances  obliged  them  to  adopt  the  sad  alternative  of 
moving  forward  the  next  day,  leaving  one  of  their  own  party  and  two 
cavalrymen  to  continue  the  search. 

They  bade  adieu  to  Yellowstone  Lake,  surfeited  with  the  wonders 
they  had  seen.  The  desire  for  home  now  superseded  all  thought  of 
further  exploration,  and  the  loss  of  their  friend  was  a  continuous  source 
of  unhappy  reflections.  They  had  beheld  the  greatest  wonders  on  the 
continent,  and  were  convinced  there  was  not  on  the  globe  another 
region  where,  within  the  same  limits,  nature  had  crowded  so  much 
grandeur  and  majesty.  To  return  home  now  was  their  purpose,  as  no 
more  wonders  were  to  be  seen,  and  they  would  journey  by  way  of 
Madison  Yalley.  Judge,  then,  their  surprise,  as,  entering  the  basin  at 
mid-afternoon  of  their  second  days'  travel  homeward  by  this  route, 
they  saw  in  the  clear  sunlight  at  no  great  distance  an  immense  volume 
of  clear,  sparkling  water  projected  into  the  air  to  the  height  of  125 
feet.  Spurring  their  jaded  animals  they  were  soon  beside  this  wonder- 
ful phenomenon.  It  was  a  perfect  Geyser,  elevated  thirty  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  surrounding  plain ;  an  irregular  oval  3x7  feet  in  diameter, 
with  a  margin  of  sinter  curiously  piled  up  and  the  exterior  crust  filled 
with  little  hollows  full  of   water,  in  which  were  small  globules  of 


566  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

sediment  gathered  around  bits  of  wood  and  other  nuclei.  The  pro- 
jected waters  were  at  a  boiling  temperature  and  on  the  summit  of  a 
cone  twenty  feet  high  near  by  was  a  boiling  spring  seven  feet  in  diam- 
eter surrounded  with  beautiful  incrustations,  on  the  slope  of  which  they 
gathered  twigs  and  pine-tree  cones  encased  in  a  silicious  crust  a  quarter 
of  an  inch  in  thickness.  But  aU  the  curiosities  of  this  basin  were 
insignificant  compared  with  the  Geysers.  During  their  brief  stay  of 
twenty-two  hours  they  beheld  twelve  in  action,  one  of  which  they 
named  "  The  Fan,"  as  it  possessed  an  orifice  which  discharged  two 
radiating  jets  of  water  to  the  height  of  sixty  feet,  the  falling  drops 
and  spray  resembling  a  feather  fan.  The  effect  was  exceedingly  beau- 
tiful. Another  was  named  "  The  Grotto,"  from  its  singular  crater  of 
vitrified  sinter,  full  of  large  sinuous  apertures. 

*  "The  Castle"  was  situated  on  the  summit  of  an  incrusted  mound, 
and  possessed  a  turreted  crater  through  which  a  large  volume  of  water 
was  expelled  at  intervals  of  two  or  three  hours  to  the  height  of  fifty 
feet,  from  a  discharging  orifice  three  feet  in  diameter. 

They  named  "The  Giant"  from  its  rugged  crater,  ten  feet  in  dia- 
meter on  the  outside,  and  from  its  discharge  of  a  vast  body  of  water 
in  a  column  five  feet  in  diameter  and  140  feet  in  vertical  height, 
retaining  its  eruptive  flow  for  three  hours  at  a  time. 

In  their  search  for  new  wonders  they  were  led  across  "  Fire  Hole 
River,"  and  ascending  a  gentle  incrusted  slope  came  suddenly  upon  a 
large  oval  aperture  with  scolloped  edges,  the  diameters  of  which  were 
eighteen  and  twenty-five  feet.  No  water  was  discovered,  but  they 
could  hear  it  distinctly  bubbling  and  boiling  at  a  great  distance  below. 
Suddenly  it  began  to  rise,  sending  out  huge  masses  of  steam,  produc- 
ing a  general  stampede  of  their  party,  and  driving  them  far  back  from 
the  point  of  observation.  It  quieted  for  a  few  niinutes'«and  then,  seized 
with  a  fearful  spasm,  rose  with  incredible  rapidity,  scarce  affording 
them  time  for  escape,  bursting  from  the  orifice  with  terrific  momen- 
tum, rising  in  a  column  the  full  size  of  the  aperture  to  a  height  of 
sixty  feet,  while  out  of  the  apex  of  this  vast  watery  mass  rose  five  or 
six  lesser  jets  or  round  columns  of  water,  varying  from  nine  to  fifteen 
inches  in  diameter,  and  projected  to  the  wonderful  height  of  250- feet. 

This  grand  eruption  continued  for  20  minutes  and  was  the  most 
magnificent  sight  they  beheld.  They  stood  on  the  side  of  the  Geyser, 
nearest  the  sun,  the  gleams  of  which  filled  the  sparkling  column  of 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


567 


water  and  spray  with  myriad  rainbows,  whose  arches  constantly 
changed,  dipping  and  fluttering  hither  and  thither  and  disappearing 
only  to  be  succeeded  by  others  again  and  again,  while  the  minute 
globules  into  which  the  spent  jets  were  diffused  when  falling,  sparkled 
like  a  shower  of  diamonds.  Around  every  shadow  which  the  denser 
clouds  of  vapor,  interrupting  the  sun's  rays,  cast  upon  the  column, 
they  beheld  a  luminous 
circle  radiant  with  all  the    E^r^^"'"^"  .==^^,^— .  -===..:-^-_.=..  =^=^n:-:n:Hq 

colors  of  the  prism,  re- 
sembling the  halo  of  glory 
represented  i  n  paintings 
as  encircling  the  head  of 
Divinity.  All  the  wond- 
ers they  had  previously 
witnessed  appeared  tame 
in  comparison  with  the 
perfect  grandeur  and 
beauty  of  this  display. 
This  Geyser  they  named 
"  The  Giantess." 

In  this  basin,  two  miles 
in  length  and  one  mile  in 
width,  there  were  more 
than  a  thousand  pipes  or 


k 


THE   GIANT   GEYSER. 


568  ECHOtS    FKOM    THE    BOCKT     MOUXTAIlfS. 

wells,  rising  to  the  surface,  varying  in  diameter  from  2  to  120  feet, 
their  water  at  the  boiling  point,  hundreds  bearing  evidence  of  Geysers. 
They  could  not,  however,  linger  to  make  further  explorations;  their 
waning  stores  admonishing  them  of  the  necessity  for  a  hurried  depart- 
ure, and  they  left  this  truly  remarkable  region  less  than  half  explored. 
The  entire  country  is  volcanic,  constantly  under  an  active  internal 
pressure,  which  obtains  rehef  through  those  numberless  springs,  jets, 
volcanoes  and  geysers,  and  but  for  which  there  might  be  one  terrific 
outburst,  forming  a  volcano  of  vast  dimensions.  Indeed,  a  mount- 
aineer who  visited  a  portion  of  this  region  a  year  before  these  explor- 
ations, discovered  at  one  place  a  small  volcano  constantly  overflowing 
with  liquid  lava  and  sulphur  and  emitting  smoke,  and  it  may^  be  that 
within  this  remarkable  region  the  genuine  volcanic  elements  may  some 
day  burst  forth  with  an  eruptive  force  superior  to  that  of  ^tna  or 
Vesuvius. 

The  Geyser  is  a  new  and  remarkable  feature  of  our  physical 
histor3^  It  is  found  in  no  other  countries  but  Iceland  and  Thibet, 
although  the  latter  are  inconsiderable  when  compared  to  Iceland, 
and  those  of  Iceland  dwindle  into  insignificance  when  compared  to  those 
of  Fire  Hole  or  Madison  Valley.  Until  the  discovery  of  the  American 
Ge3"sers  there  were  but  two  which  attracted  general  attention — the 
Great  Geyser  and  the  Strokr,  of  Iceland.  These  were  visited  and 
commented  upon  by  the  most  distinguished  savants  of  the  Old  "World, 
Von  Troil,  Stanley,  Ohlsen,  Hooker,  McKenzie  and  Bunsen,  all  of 
whom  published  their  theories  with  respect  to  the  causes  of  their 
origin. 

Bunsen  ascribes  the  eruption  to  the  theory  evolved  by  M.  Dormy, 
of  Ghent,  who  discovered  that  water  long  boiled  becomes  more  and 
more  free  from  air,  by  which  its  molecular  cohesion  is  so  greatly 
increasetl  that,  when  exposed  to  a  heat  suflBcient  to  overcome  the  force 
of  cohesion,  the  production  of  steam  is  instantaneous,  and  of  such 
quantitx'  as  to  cause  explosion.  Bunsen  found  the  water  at  the  bottom 
of  the  well  of  the  Great  Geyser  to  be  of  a  constantly- increasing  tem- 
perature up  to  the  moment  of  an  eruption.  On  one  occasion  he  ascer- 
tained it  to  be  as  high  as  261^  Fahrenheit.  His  theory  is  that  on  reach- 
ing some  unknown  point  above  that  temperature  ebulition  takes 
place,  vapor  is  suddenly  generated  iu  enormous  quantities,  and  an 
eruption  of  the  superior  column  of  water  immediately  follows. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ItOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  669 

The  explorers  state  that  the  Geysers  of  the  Madison  exhibit  pre- 
cisely the  same  physical  features,  and  doubtless  originate  in  the  same 
causes.  They  are  likewise  surrounded  by  innumerable  springs  of  hot 
water.  The  waters  of  the  Madison  Yalley  Geysers,  like  those  of  the 
Iceland  Geysers,  appear  perfectly  pure,  and  might  probably  be  used 
for  cooking  or  drinking. 


FAN  GEYSER,  YELLOWSTONE  REGION. 

Dr.  Black  gives  the  following  result  of  an  analysis  of  a  quantity 
of  10,000  grains,  equal  to  >  of  a  gallon  of  water  from  the  Great  Geyser 
of  Iceland  : 

Soda,  .         .         .         ...         .         .         .         .         .         .  0.95 

Alumina,  ..........  0.48 

Silica, 5.40 

Muriate  of  soda, 2.46 

Dry  sulphate  of  soda, ,        .         .  1.46 

Total, 10.75 

The  explorers  suggest  that  a  broad  field  is  opened  to  the  chemist 
in  the  investigation  of  the  many-tinted  springs  of  boiling  mud,  and  the 
mud  volcano.  Such  objects  were  of  the  greatest  interest  to  Humboldt, 
who  devotes  to  their  description  one  of  the  most  interesting  chapters 
of  "  Cosmos." 


570  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKT    MOUNTAIXS. 

Besides  these  marvels  of  the  Upper  Tellowstone,  the  tourist  may 
gaze  upon  the  strange  scenery  of  the  lower  valley  of  that  remarkable 
stream,  the  Great  Falls  of  the  Missouri,  the  grotesque  groups  of  eroded 
rocks  below  Fort  Benton,  the  beautiful  caiions  of  the  Prickly  Pear, 
and  the  mighty  architecture  of  the  vast  chains  and  spurs  of  mountains 
which  everywhere  traverse  that  picturesque  and  romantic  country, 
which  these  brave  men  opened  up  to  the  knowledge  of  mankind. 

Since  those  early  adventures  I  have  recorded,  there  have  been 
many  exploring  parties  through  this  Yellowstone  Park  and  its  tributaries, 
including  that  of  the  Hay  den  survey  in  1871.  The  Park  itself  has  been 
made  national  by  legislative  and  executive  action,  and  is  now  a  resort 
for  the  "  enquirers"  and  "investigators,"  as  well  as  those  of  all  nations 
who  love  romance  and  wild  scenery. 

Up  to  1878  there  had  been  discovered  in  the  Yellowstone  Park 
2,195  springs  and  geysers,  including  seventy -one  active  geysers,  and 
this  enormous  number  was  the  result  of  onU'  a  partial  survej'  of  the 
territory.  The  greater  number  of  the  active  geysers  are  found  in  what 
is  known  as  the  Upper  Geyser  Basin,  where  they  are  found  chiefly 
along  the  banks  of  the  Yellowstone  River.  Six  miles  below  the  upper 
basin  is  what  is  called  the  Midway  Geyser  Basin.  It  is  here  that  are 
found  the  great  Excelsior  Geyser  and  the  Grand  Prismatic  Spring, 
The\'  lie  on  the  west  bank  of  the  river,  and  may  be  approached  by  a 
foot-bridge.  The  Excelsior  is  the  largest  geyser  known  in  the  world, 
but  its  eruptions  heretofore  have  been  so  irregular  that  few  have  been 
witnessed  of  late  years.  The  name  of  Cliff  Cauldron  was  given  it  by 
the  Hayden  survey  in  1871,  and  it  was  not  until  some  years  later  that 
it  was  discovered  to  be  a  powerful  geyser.  In  1881  a  series  of  great 
eruptions  took  place,  in  which  a  great  column  of  water  was  ejected  to 
the  height  of  250  and  even  300  feet.  At  times  stones  were  thrown 
out.  The  crater  is  an  immense  pit  330  feet  in  length  and  200  feet  in 
width  at  the  widest  part,  the  cliff-like  and  treacherous  walls  being  from 
fifteen  to  twenty  feet  high  from  the  boiling  waters  to  the  surrounding 
leveL  The  water  is  always  in  violent  agitation  and  dense  clouds  of 
steam  generally  obscure  the  surface.  "  Hell's  Half  Acre  "  is  another 
expressive  naTie  given  to  this  terrible  pit.  Two  rivulets  pour  forth 
into  the  river  from  the  spring,  and  the  deposits  are  very  brilliantly 
colored,  yellow,  orange,  red,  and  rose  tints  being  displayed  in  pro- 
fusion. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  571 

There  is  no  time  when  the  subterranean  forces  are  inactive,  and  the 
geyser  region  at  all  times  presents  a  strange  and  weird  scene.  Strange 
sights  and  sounds  greet  the  stranger  on  every  side.  Clouds  of  steam 
arise  from  a  dozen  different  localities,  some  of  the  springs  being  hidden 
in  the  timber  which  covers  the  neighboring  mountain  sides.  In  the 
vicinity  of  the  Geysers  there  are  hissing  and  gurgling  sounds  and  thun- 
derous thuds,  as  of  ponderous  machinery  at  work  in  vast  subterraneous 
depths.  The  eruption  of  any  of  the  Geysers  is  heralded  by  the  escape  of 
steam  from  an  adjacent  steam  vent,  and  directly  after  a  fountain  of  hot 
water  is  thrown  into  the  air  with  fearful  belchings,  to  fall  again  in  a 
giant  cataract.  Almost  constantly  there  is  a  display  of  some  kind 
going  on,  and  the  strange  din  is  kept  up  night  and  day.  There  are 
daily  eruptions  of  some  of  the  Geysers,  while  others  have  longer  inter- 
vals of  quiescence,  and  some  of  them,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Excelsior, 
are  apparently  extinct  for  long  periods. 

The  recent  outburst  of  the  Excelsior,  after  a  quietude  of  four  years, 
is  indeed  remarkable.  It  demonstrates  the  fact  that  some  unknown 
force  holds  in  check  these  subterranean  powers,  which,  for  an  instant 
losing  its  grasp,  permits  the  fiery  forces  to  gush  forth  from  their  cav- 
ernous depths  and  exhaust  themselves  in  contact  with  the  elements  of 
the  earth's  atmosphere.  The  term  geyser  is  derived  from  the  Icelandic 
word,  gey-sa,  to  gush.  As  previously  stated,  certain  theories  have  oeen 
advanced  as  to  the  propagation  of  the  geysers.  Herschel,  Bunsen, 
Comstock,  McKenzie  and  other  scientists  have  advanced  theories  as  ta 
geyser  action,  and  that  of  Bunsen  is  generally  accepted  in  the  main. 
The  presence  of  igneous  rocks,  which  still  retain  their  heat,  at  a  consid- 
erable distance  below  the  surface,  and  the  admission  of  water  to  sub- 
terranean apertures,  or  tubes,  seem  to  be  the  requisite  conditions  to 
produce  a  geyser. 

One  writer  on  these  wonderful  formations  presents  his  views  as 
follows : 

"  Steam  is  formed  within  caverns  or  chambers  partly  filled  with 
water,  and  a  column  of  water  as  well  as  the  stream  itself  is  driven  out 
through  the  tube.  Intermittent  geyser  action  may  result  from  curva- 
tures in  the  tube,  deposits  of  water  being  left  in  the  depressions  from 
previous  upheavels  to  await  the  next  discharge,  the  intervals  between 
the  eruptions  being  governed  by  the  size  of  the  chambers  wherein  the 
steam  is  generated,  conditions  of  temperature,  etc.     It  has  been  noticed 


672 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


THE    GROTTO    GEYSER.    VELTX>WSTONE    REGION. 


that  geysers  occur  where  the  intensity  of  volcanic  action  is  decreasing. 
In  the  neighborhood  of  active  volcanoes,  such  as  Vesuvius,  the  temper- 
ature appears  to  be  too  high,  and  the  vapor  escapes  as  steam  from 
what  are  called  stufds.  When  the  rocks  are  more  cooled  the  water  comes 
forth  in  a  liquid  form.  Says  Dr.  Peale  in  Science  (July  27th,  1883): 
*  It  is  probable  all  geysers  are  originally  due  to  a  violent  outbreak  of 
steam  and  water,  and  that  the  first  stage  is  that  of  a  huge  steam-vent. 
Under  such  conditions,  irregular  cavities  and  passages  are  more  likely 
to  be  formed  than  regular  tubes.  The  lining  of  the  passages  and  tubes 
takes  place  afterward,  and  is  a  slow  process.  "WTiether  the  subter- 
ranean passages  in  which  the  water  is  heated  are  narrow  channels, 
enlargement  of  the  tubes  or  caverns  or  tubes  is  probably  of  little  con- 
sequence, except  as  the  periods  or  intervals  of  the  geysers  are  influenced. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  .  573 

If  water  in  a  glass  tube  be  heated  rapidly  from  the  bottom  it  will  be 
violently  expelled  from  the  tube,  or  if  boiled  in  a  kettle  that  has  a  lid 
and  a  spout,  either  the  lid  will  be  blown  off  or  the  water  will  be  forced 
out  of  the  spout.  In  the  first  case  we  have  an  explanation  in  part,  at 
least,  of  Bunsen's  theory,  and  the  second  exemplifies  the  theories 
which  presuppose  the  existence  of  subterranean  cavities  and  connect- 
ing tubes.  The  simpler  the  form  of  the  geyser-tube,  the  less  is  the 
impediment  to  the  circulation  of  the  superheated  water;  and  in  this 
fact  lies  the  explanation  of  the  difference  between  constantly  boiling 
springs  and  geysers.  The  variations  and  modifications  of  the  subter- 
ranean water  passages,  however,  must  be  important  factors  entering 
into  any  complete  explanation  of  geyseric  action.' " 

The  handsomest  of  all  the  Park  springs  is  the  Grand  Prismatic 
Spring,  which  lies  near  the  pit  of  the  Excelsior  Ge^^ser,  named  by  Dr. 
Hayden  in  1871.  It  measures  350  by  250  feet.  Over  the  central  pit 
or  bowl,  which  is  constantly  boiling  and  sending  up  vast  columns  of 
steam,  the  color  is  a  deep  blue,  which  fades  into  green  toward  the 
edge.  The  surrounding  shallow  basin  has  a  yellow  tint,  fading  into 
orange,  and  outside  the  rim  is  a  brilliant  red  deposit.  This  fades  into 
purples,  browns  and  grays,  the  whole  being  on  the  gray- white  ground 
of  the  deposit.  There  are  several  other  remarkably  beautiful  springs 
in  the  vicinity,  including  the  Turquoise,  a  deep-blue  tinted  square 
spring  at  a  lower  level  than  the  Prismatic. 


CHAPTER  XL 

THraXT-SEVKX  DAYS  OF  PERIL  — REVTEW  OF  THE  STORY  OF  THOiAX  C  EVARTS, 
OXE  OF  THE  PARTY  OF  EXPLORERS  FROJf  MONTANA  WHO  BECAJ*E  SEPARA- 
TED FROM  HIS  PARTY,  AXD  WHO  WANDERED  FOR  THIRTY-SEVEX  DAYS  IN 
THE  UNKNOWN  DEPTHS  OF  THE  YELLOWSTONE. 

A  DESIRE  to  visit  the  remarkable  region  and  view  the  wonders  of 
the  Upper  Yellowstone  led  Truman  C.  Everts,  whom  I  knew  as  a  Gov- 
ernment official  in  Montana  Territory,  to  unite  in  an  expedition  to  that 
region  of  marvelous  natural  productions  in  the  month  of  August  of  the 
year  1S70.  Having  suffered  all  the  perils  of  that  expedition,  he  adds 
to  the  reports  of  others  of  his  party  the  following  narrative  of  his  wan- 
derings and  sufferings  in  the  wilderness  of  forest  and  mountain  that  he 
traversed  for  thirty-seven  days,  lost  amid  its  labyrinths  and  nearly 
famished  with  hunger  and  cold-  In  an  exciting  story  of  those  thirty- 
seven  days  of  peril  told  in  Scribners  MontJdy  he  tells  us  that  the  gen- 
eral character  of  the  stupendous  scenery  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  had 
prepared  his  mind  for  giving  credit  to  all  the  strange  stories  told  of  the 
YeUovretone,  and  he  became  as  fullv  satisfied  of  the  existence  of  the 
physical  phenomena  of  that  country  on  the  morning  when  his  company 
started  from  Helena  as  when  he  afterward  beheld  its  majestic  propor- 
tions. Having  engaged  in  the  enterprise  with  enthusiasm,  he  felt  that  all 
the  hardships  and  exposures  of  a  month's  horseback  travel  through  an 
unexplored  region  would  be  more  than  compensated  by  the  grandeur 
and  novelty  of  the  natural  objects  with  which  it  was  filled-  The  idea 
of  being  lost  in  its  vast  depths,  without  the  least  of  the  ordinary  means 
of  subsistence  and  of  wandering  for  days  and  weeks  alone  in  a  famish- 
ing condition  in  the  unknown  wilderness,  formed  no  part  of  his  con- 
templation. 

On  the  day  that  he  found  himself  separated  from  the  company, 
and  for  several  days  previous  their  course  had  been  impeded  by  a 
dense  gro>%i:h  of  the  pine  forest,  and  large  tracts  of  fallen  timber  fre- 
quently rendering  their  progress  impossible.  Whenever  they  became 
entangled  in  one  of  those  immense  windfalls,  each  one  of  the  party 
engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  a  passage  through  it,  and  while  thus  employed, 

574 


ECHOES    FKOil    THE    KOCKY     MO.USTTAIXS.  575 

and  with  the  idea  that  he  liad  found  an  opening,  he  strayed  out  of 
sight  and  sound  of  his  companions.  But  these  separations  had  fre- 
quently occurred,  and  although  quite  late  in  the  afternoon  he  felt  no 
alarm,  but  rode  on,  confidently  expecting  soon  to  rejoin  his  comrades  or 
discover  their  camp.  At  length  darkness  overtook  him  in  the  dense 
forest.  This  was  diagreeable  enough,  but  still  occasioned  no  alarm. 
He  would  do  without  his  supper  for  the  night,  but  breakfast  with  the 
party  in  the  morning  with  a  greater  zest  for  the  little  adventure. 
Selecting  a  spot  for  his  slumber,  he  picketed  his  horse,  built  a  fire 
and  was  soon  wrapped  in  sleep,  for  the  day  had  been  long  and  toilsome. 

At  early  dawn  he  saddled  and  mounted  his  horse  and  started^ 
as  he  supposed,  in  the  direction  of  the  camp  of  his  friends.  The 
ride  the  day  previous  had  been  through  a  peninsula  jutting  into  the 
lake.  He  directed  his  way  to  the  shore  of  this  lake,  feeling  confident 
his  companions  had  camped  upon  its  sandy  beach.  But  it  was  only 
by  a  slow  process  he  could  make  his  way  through  the  dark,  dense 
forest.  While  searching  for  the  trail  he  became  confused,  as  the 
fallen  foliage  of  the  pines  had  obliterated  the  trail.  He  was  obliged 
to  dismount  and  examine  the  ground  for  its  faintest  trace. 

Approachmg  an  opening  where  he  beheld  several  vistas,  he 
dismounted  for  the  purpose  of  selecting  the  one  leading  in  the  direc- 
tion he  had  chosen,  and  so,  leaving  his  horse  unhitched,  as  was  his 
custom,  he  walked  several  rods  into  the  forest.  While  thus  ent^faored 
his  horse  took  fright,  and  he  had  but  just  time  to  turn  about  and 
behold  him  for  the  last  time  as  he  disappeared  at  full  speed  among  the 
lofty  trees.  With  him  went  blankets,  gun,  pistols,  fishing-tackle, 
matches,  everything  save  the  clothing  on  his  person,  a  couple  of 
knives  he  carried  in  his  pockets,  and  a  small  opera  glass,  with  which 
he  w^as  surveying  the  distance  when  this  unhappy  accident  occurred. 
Instead  of  continuing  his  pursuit  of  the  camp,  he  went  immediately  and 
quite  naturally  in  search  of  his  animal.  Half  a  day's  search  convinced 
him  of  its  utter  uselessness.  He  wrote  and  posted  in  an  open  sjiace 
several  notices,  which,  if  his  friends  chanced  to  see,  would  inform  them 
of  his  desolate  condition  and  the  route  he  had  taken,  and  then,  wntli 
brave  hope  in  his  heart,  he  manfully  struck  put  in  the  supposed 
direction  of  the  camp.  But  the  day  wore  on  without  any  discovery, 
and  alarm  took  the  place  of  anxiety  as  the  prospect  of  another  night 
in  the  wilderness  dawned  upon  him,  this,  too,  without  the  warmth  or 


576  ECEOES    FROM     THE    KOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

protection  of  a  fire.  But  the  bright  side  of  a  misfortune,  which  he 
learned  b\"  experience,  even  under  the  most  damaging  circumstances, 
always  presents  some  features  of  encouragement.  When  he  realized 
his  condition  to  be  one  of  peril  he  immediately  banished  from  his 
mind  all  fear  of  an  unfavorable  result.  Another  night  must  be  spent 
amid  the  fallen  timber  before  his  return  could  be  accomplished.  His 
friends  having  seen  his  notices  upon  the  trees  were  now  upon  his  trail, 
and  surely  ere  long  he  would  be  in  the  arms  of  his  glad  rescuers. 
Thus  he  reasoned,  but  at  no  j>eriod  of  his  exile  did  he  suffer  so 
mentally  from  the  cravings  of  his  hunger  as  when,  exhausted  with 
continuous  fast  and  the  long  day  of  fruitless  search,  he  resigned 
himself  to  a  couch  of  pine  foliage  in  the  deep  darkness  of  a  thicket  of 
small  trees.  How  forlorn  was  his  condition!  He  i>eered  upward 
through  the  darkness,  but  all  was  gloom.  The  wind  moaned  sadly 
through  the  pines.  The  black  forest  was  alive  with  the  screech ings  of 
strange  night  birds,  the  angry  barking  of  coyotes,  and  the  prolonged 
dismal  howl  of  the  ravenous  gray  wolf.  These  sounds,  though  con- 
stant through  their  journey,  were  now  in  his  lone  condition  full 
of  terror,  and  banished  the  thought  of  sleep.  But  above  it  all  was 
a  ray  of  golden  hope,  lighting  up  the  darkness  and  gloom  of  his  night 
of  despair,  and  that  was  the  hope  of  being  restored  to  his  friends  the 
next  day.  Early  in  the  morning  he  arose  unrefreshed  and  pursued  his 
weary  way.  About  noon  he  came  upon  the  spot  where  his  notices 
were  posted.  Imagine  his  sorrowful  disappointment  when  he  found 
that  no  one  had  been  there.  For  the  first  time  he  realized  that  he 
was  lost,  and  the  crushing  sense  of  utter  destitution  came  with  over- 
whelming force.  "Xo  food,  no  fire;  no  means  to  procure  either, 
alone  in  a  vast  unexplored  wilderness,  150  miles  from  the  nearest 
human  abode,  surrounded  by  wild  beasts  and  famishing  with  hunger." 
It  was,  however,  no  time  for  despondency.  A  moment  afterward  he 
felt  how  calamity  can  elevate  the  mind  in  the  formation  of  a  resolu- 
tion "  i:iot  to  perish  in  that  wilderness."  Such  were  the  thoughts  of 
this  brave  man.  All  his  plans  were  controlled  by  the  idea  of  finding 
his  party.  He  thought  by  traversing  the  peninsula  centrally  he 
would  strike  the  shore  of  the  lake  in  advance  of  their  camp  and  near 
the  point  of  departure  for  the  Madison.  He  pursued  this  impression, 
but,  clambering  over  the  huge  trunks  of  fallen  trees,  he  nearly  fell 
from  exhaustion.      "Weakness  now  took  the  place  of  hunger.      He 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  677 

felt  no  cravings,  although  conscious  of  the  want  of  food.  Despon- 
dency strove  with  resolution  for  the  mastery  of  his  thoughts.  He 
dwelt  on  home  and  family,  of  the  chance  of  starvation  or  death  by 
wild  beasts  in  the  deep  forest.  But  as  these  thoughts  arose  in  his  mind 
he  endeavored  instantly  to  banish  them  with  reflections  adapted  to  his 
immediate  necessities.  He  tells  us  that  he  recollects  at.  this  time 
discussing  the  question  whether  there  was  not  implanted  by  Provi- 
dence in  every  man  a  principle  of  self-preservation  equal  to  any 
emergency  which  did  not  destroy  his  reason.  He  decided  this 
question  in  the  affirmative  many  times.  There  is  life  in  the  thought! 
It  restores  hope,  allays  hunger,  renews  energy,  encourages  persever- 
ance, and,  as  he  demonstrated  in  his  own  case,  brings  a  man  out  of 
difficulty  when  all  else  fails. 

It  was  midday  when  he  emerged  from  the  forest  at  an  open  space 
at  the  foot  of  the  peninsula.  A  broad  lake  of  beautiful  curvature 
with  magnificent  surroundings  lay  before  him  glittering  in  the  sun- 
beams. It  was  full  twelve  miles  in  circumference.  A  wide  belt  of 
sand  formed  the  margin  which  he  was  approaching,  directly  opposite 
to  which,  rising  apparently  from  the  very  depths  of  the  waters, 
towered  the  loftiest  peak  of  an  interminable  range  of  mountains. 
Yapor  ascended  from  innumerable  hot  springs  and  the  sparkling  jets 
of  a  single  geyser  added  a  novel  feature  to  one  of  the  grandest  land- 
scapes he  ever  beheld.  The  scene  was  full  of  life.  Large  flocks  of 
swans  and  other  water-fowl  sported  on  the  surface  of  the  lake ;  otters 
in  great  numbers  performed  the  most  amusing  aquatic  evolutions; 
mink  and  beaver  swam  around  unfrighted  in  grotesque  confusion. 
Deer,  elk  and  mountain  sheep  gazed  at  him  in  surprise  more  than  fear. 
The  adjacent  forest  was  vocal  with  the  songs  of  birds  and  the  chatter- 
ing notes  of  a  species  of  mocking-bird  afforded  merriment.  Under 
more  favorable  circumstances  this  scene  of  grandeur,  beauty  and  nov- 
elty would  have  transported  the  senses ;  but  worn  with  toil,  famishing 
with  hunger  and  overcome  with  anxiety,  it  paled  before  his  vision. 

The  lake  was  one  thousand  feet  lower  than  the  highest  point  of 
the  peninsula  and  several  hundred  below  the  level  of  Yellowstone 
Lake.  He  recognized  the  mountain  overshadowing  it  as  the  landmark 
which  a  few  days  before  had  been  named  by  his  friends  in  his  honor 
Mount  Everts ;  and,  associated  as  it  is  with  some  of  the  most  terrible 
incidents  of  his  lonely  exile,  he  possesses  more  than  a  mere  discoverer's 


678  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

right  to  the  perpetuity  of  that  landmark's  name.  The  lake  wnich  he 
believed  to  be  the  source  of  the  great  southern  tributary  of  the  Colum- 
bia he  gave  the  name  of  "  Bessie  Lake,"  after  the 

*'  Sole  daughter  of  his  house  and  heart." 

During  the  first  two  days  of  his  wanderings  the  fear  of  meeting 
with  Indians  gave  him  mucu  anxiety.  But  now,  in  his  present  con- 
dition, all  such  fear  was  banished,'  and  he  longed,  for  the  approach  of 
a  Bannock  or  Crow.  Imagine  his  delight  while  gazing  over  the 
broad  expanse  of  the  lake  to  behold,  from  a  disUmt  point,  a  lar'*'e 
canoe  with  a  single  oarsman  put  out  toward  the  shore  where  he  was 
seated.  With  beating  heart  and  hurried  steps  he  went  forth  to  meet 
it  at  the,  water's  edge;  all  his  energies  stimulated  by  the  assurance  it 
offered  of  food,  rescue  and  friends.  As  he  approached  the  shore,  O 
bitter  disappointment,  the  object  which  his  eager  fancy  had  trans- 
formed into  an  an^jel  of  relief  stalked  from  the  water  an  enormous 
pelican,  which  flapped  its  dragon  wings  as  if  in  solemn  mockery  of 
his  sorrow,  and  flew  away  to  a  distant  point. 

"While  looking  for  a  spat  to  repose  in  safety  during  the  fast- 
approaching  night,  his  attention  was  directed  to  a  small  green  plant 
whose  lovely  hue  formetl  a  striking  contrast  with  the  dark  pine  foliage. 
He  pulled  it  by  the  root,  which  was  long  and  tapering,  not  unlike  a 
radish.  It  was  a  thistle.  He  tasted  it,  and  found  it  to  be  both  pala- 
table and  nutritious,  and  the  first  meal  in  four  days  was  made  on 
thistle  roots.  He  had  at  last  found  food,  and  could  subsist  until  his 
rescue. 

Overjoyed  at  this  discovery  he  lay  down  to  sleep  under  the  foliage 
of  a  large  tree.  Suddenly  he  was  awakened  by  a  loud  scream  not 
nnlike  that  of  a  human  being  in  distress,  and  close  at  hand.  There 
was  no  mistaking  that  fearful  sound.  It  was  the  voice  of  a  mountain 
lion  and  caused  each  nerve  to  thrill  with  terror.  Swinging  instantly 
into  the  branches  of  a  friendly  tree  he  scrambled  as  fast  as  he  could 
to  its  topmost  boughs  while  the  savage  beast  snuffed  and  growled 
below  at  the  very  spot  where  he  had  lain. 

Failing  to  alarm  the  animal  bj'  his  responsive  screams  and  by  dash- 
ing at  him  branches  which  he  broke  from  the  tree,  he  shook  the  slen- 
der tree  top  with  all  his  might.  It  was  the  impotency  of  fright.  The 
wild  beast  remained  and  now  began  the  circuit  of  the  tree  as  if 
selecting  a  spot  to  spring  up  into  its  boughs,  lashing  the  ground  with 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  579 

his  tail  and  prolonging  his  howl  to  a  roar.  Expecting  each  moment  it 
would  take  the  deadly  leap,  he  endeavored  to  collect  his  thoughts  and 
prepare  for  the  fatal  encounter.  It  occurred  to  him  to  try  silence. 
The  lion,  ceasing  its  ravings  that  filled  the  forest  with  its  echoes,  sud- 
denly imitated  his  example.  The  silence  was  more  terrible  than  the 
clatter  and  crash  of  the  wild  beast  through  the  broken  brushwood. 
Moments  with  him  were  like  hours.  After  a  lapse  of  time  he  could 
not  estimate,  the  baffled  beast  gave  a  wild  spring  into  the  thicket 
and  ran  screaming  and  roaring  into  the  forest.  Once  again  his  deliver- 
ance was  effected,  but  only  to  endure  days  of  toilsome  wanderings, 
hunger  and  well  nigh  starvation. 


MOUNTAIN  LION. 


After  his  escape  from  the  ferocious  beast  a  sense  of  overpowering 
weakness  came  upon  him,  which  well  nigh  palsied  his  efforts  and  made 
his  descent  from  the  tree  both  difficult  and  dangerous.  Incredible  to 
relate,  he  lay  down  in  his  old  bed,  and  was  soon  wrapped  in  deep 
slumber.  At  daylight'  he  was  aroused  by  a  marked  change  in  the 
atmosphere.  A  dreary  storm  of  mingled  snow  and  rain,  common  to 
those  latitudes,  broke  upon  him.  His  torn  clothing  exposed  his  person 
to  its  "pitiless  peltings."  An  easterly  wind  increasing  to  a  gale 
admonished  him  that  it  would  be  furious  and  of  long  duration.  He 
could  find  no  better  shelter  than  the  spreading  branches  of  a  spruce 
tree,  beneath  which,  covered  with  earth  and  boughs  he  lay  for  two 


580  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOCXTAINS, 

days,  while  the  storm  raged  around  him  with  fierce  violence.  While 
in  this  deplorable  condition  from  hunger  and  cold,  a  little  benumbed 
snowbird  hopped  within  his  reach.  He  instantly  seized  and  killed  it, 
and  plucking  its  feathers,  ate  it  raw.  He  calls  it  a  delicious  meal  for 
a  half-starved  man. 

On  the  thii-d  day,  during  a  lull  in  the  storm,  he  arose  and  started 
in  the  direction  of  a  large  group  of  hot  springs  steaming  under  the 
shadow  of  Mount  Everts.  Before  reachino:  these  natural  boilinir 
cauldrons  the  storm  had  begun  anew,  chilling  him  to  the  marrow  and 
thoroughly  saturating  his  clothing.  His  heels  and  the  sides  of  his  feet 
were  frozen.  He  lay  down  beside  one  of  these  springs  until  the 
warmth  had  permeated  his  system  and  he  had  quieted  his  appetite  by 
a  few  thistle  roots.  Surveying  his  surroundings  he  selected  a  spot 
between  two  springs  sufficiently  apart  to  afford  heat  at  his  head  and 
feet.  Over  this  spot  he  built  a  bower  of  pine  branches  with  foliage  for 
a  bed  and  stowed  himself  away  to  await  the  end  of  the  storm.  Thistles 
were  abundant,  and  in  close  proximity  was  a  small  round  boiling 
spring  in  which  he  cooked  them  and  which  he  called  his  dinner  pot. 
Here  he  remained  for  seven  days  with  nothing  to  do  but  to  think  and 
sleep. 

The  want  of  fire  gave  him  the  greatest  concern.  He  recalled  every- 
thing he  had  heard  or  read  of  by  which  fire  could  be  induced  by 
artificial  means.  None  appeared  to  be  within  his  reach.  Exposure  to 
a  storm  similar  to  the  one  through  which  he  had  just  passed  would 
result  in  death.  Suddenly  a  gleam  of  sunshine  lit  up  the  bosom  of  the 
lake,  and  with  it  the  thought  flashed  upon  his  mind  that  with  a  lens 
from  his  opera-glass  he  could  obtain  fire  from  Heaven.  He  instantly 
began  the  test,  and  with  what  joy  unspeakable  did  he  observe  the 
smoke  curl  from  the  bits  of  dry  wood,  and  then  break  forth  into  a  tiny 
but  consuming  flame.  The  experiment  was  a  success  and  thenceforth 
fire  should  go  with  him,  a  constant  compan/on.  He  would  not  exchange 
his  little  lens  for  the  whole  world.  He  now  possessed  food  and  fire 
and  would  not  despair ! 

He  was  now  ready  to  proceed  on  his  search  for  the  way  of  escape, 
but  at  this  moment  met  with  an  accident  that  delayed  his  departure  a 
number  of  days.  An  unlucky  movement  while  asleep  broke  the  crust 
of  earth  on  which  he  reposed  and  the  hot  steam  severely  scalded 
his  hip  before  he  could  escape  from  his  position.     This  new  affliction. 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  "  581 

added  to  the  pain  of  his  frostbitten  feet,  already  festering,  was  a  source 
of  grievous  annoyance  during  the  whole  of  his  wanderings. 

Having  lost  both  knives  he  made  a  convenient  substitute  by  sharp- 
ening the  tongue  of  a  buckle  which  he  tore  from  his  vest.  With  this 
he  cut  the  legs  and  counters  from  his  boots,  and  the  passable  slippers 
that  remained  he  fastened  to  his  feet  as  firmly  as  possible  with  strips 
of  bark.  "With  the  ravelings  of  a  linen  handkerchief,  aided  by  the 
magic  buckle,  he  mended  his  torn  clothing.  Of  the  same  material  he 
made  a  fish  line,  and  of  a  pin  found  in  his  coat  he  fashioned  a  fish 
hook,  and  by  sewing  up  the  bottoms  of  his  boot  legs  he  was  provided 
with  a  very  good  pair  of  pouches  in  which  to  carry  his  food,  fastening 
them  to  his  belt  by  the  straps. 

Thus  accoutred,  he  bade  the  springs,  which  for  so  many  days  had 
been  his  retreat,  a  final  farewell,  and  started  on  a  course  directly  across 
that  portion  of  the  neck  of  the  peninsula  that  lay  between  him  and  the 
southeast  arm  of  the  Yellowstone  Lake.  It  was  a  bright  and  beautiful 
morning  and  the  atmosphere  was  fresh  and  invigorating.  He  had  ere 
this  surrendered  all  hopes  of  discovering  his  friends,  and  he  feared  from 
the  necessities  of  their  condition  they  had  been  compelled  to  abandon 
all  efforts  for  his  recovery.  These  thoughts  were  full  of  bitterness  and 
sorrow.  Weakened  by  his  half-starved  condition,  and  theunstisfactory 
nature  of  the  only  food  he  was  able  to  secure,  he  felt  at  this  time  and 
until  the  day  of  his  rescue,  that  his  mind,  although  unimpaired  in  its 
preceptive  powers,  was  in  a  condition  to  receive  impressions  akin  to 
insanity.  He  was  constantly  in  dream-land,  indulging  in  strange  rev- 
eries, such  as  he  had  never  before  known.  He  appeared  to  possess  a 
duaUty  of  being.  He  lived  in  a  world  of  ideal  hajjpiness  and  in  a  world 
of  positive  suffering  at  the  same  time.  It  did  not  interfere,  however, 
with  his  plans  of  deliverance,  as  he  was  constantly  reminded  of  the 
necessities  of  his  condition.  These  plans,  on  retracing  his  steps  and 
reaching  Bessie  Lake,  assumed  form  and  shape.  He  built  his  fire  on  the 
beach,  and  remained  by  it  recuperating  for  two  days.  Either  of  three 
directions  he  might  take  would  effect  his  escape  if  life  and  strength 
held  out.  He  drew  upon  the  sand  a  map  of  three  several  courses  with 
reference  to  his  starting  point  from  the  lake,  and  considered  the  diffi- 
culties each  would  involve.  One  was  to  follow  Snake  River  a  distance 
of  100  miles  to  Eagle  Rock  Bridge ;  a  second  to  cross  the  country 
between  the  southern  shore  of   Yellowstone   Lake  and  the   Madison 


581 


LCHOES  FROM  THE  KOCKT  MOUNTAINS. 


mountains,  b}'  scaling  which  he  could  reach  the  settlements  in  Madison 
Valley ;  the  third  to  retrace  the  steps  of  his  lon^  and  tiresome  journey 
over  the  discouraging  route  by  which  he  had  entered  the  country. 
The  first  and  third  he  abandoned  after  much  deliberation  and 
unwisely  adopted  the  second  route  as  his  course  of  escape  from  the 
wilderness. 

Filling  his  pouches  with  thistle-roots  he  took  a  parting  survey  of 
the  little  solitude  that  had  afforded  him  food  and  fire  for  the  preceding 
ten  days,  and  with  a  feeling  of  melancholy,  started  for  the  nearest 
point  on  Yellowstone  Lake.     All  day  long  he  traveled  over  timber 


A  SIGHT  OF  TERROR. 


heaps,  tree-tops  and  through  thickets.  At  noon  he  took  the  precaution 
to  obtain  fire  and  late  in  the  afternoon,  with  a  brand  which  he  had 
kept  alive  by  constant  waving  and  blowing  he  kindled  a  fire  on  the 
only  vacant  spot  he  could  find  in  a  dense  wilderness  of  pines.  Faint 
and  exliausted  he  lay  down  for  rest.  The  deep  gloom  of  the  forest 
revealed  in  a  spectral  light  on  all  sides  a  compact  growth  of  timber 
crowned  with  sombre  foliage.  The  shrieking  of  night  birds,  the  pro- 
longed howl  of  the  wolf  and  the  human  scream  of  the  mountain-hon 
made  him  insensible  to  all  other  forms  of  suffering.  His  imagination 
was  instinct  with  terror.     At  one  moment  through  the  thicket,  he 


ECHOES    FROM    TH  K     ROCKY     MOUXTAIXS.  583 

beheld  the  blazing  eyes  of  a  forest  monster  fixed  upon  him,  prepara- 
tory to  a  deadly  leap.  At  another  came  the  swift  rush  of  yelping 
wolves  through  the  distant  brushwood,  to  tear  him  limb  from  limb. 
The  scald  on  his  hip  added  to  the  intensity  of  his  sufferings,  as  it  pre- 
vented him  from  lying  down,  and  in  a  fitful  slumber  he  fell  forward 
into  the  fire,  inflicting  a  terrible  burn  on  his  hand.  With  what  agony 
he  longed  for  the  day  ! 

With  a  bright  and  glorious  morning  came  relief  from  uncontroll- 
able nervous  excitement,  and,  in  much  better  spirits  than  he  had  before 
felt,  he  resumed  his  journey  toward  the  lake.  Another  day  of  the 
same  unceasing  toil  brought  him,  near  sunset,  to  a  lofty  headland  jut- 
ting into  the  lake  and  commanding  a  magnificent  view  of  an  immense 
area  of  mountain  and  valley.  In  the  dense  blue  of  the  horizon  in  front 
of  him  rose  the  snowy  peaks  of  the  "  Three  Tetons."  In  close  prox- 
imity on  the  right  rolled  the  picturesque  range  of  the  Madison,  glitter- 
ing in  the  sunlight  or  deepened  in  shadow  as  the  fitful  rays  of  the 
declining  sun  glanced  along  their  rocky  irregularities.  Above  him 
towered  the  lofty  domes  of  Mounts  Langford  and  Doane,  and  rising 
from  the  promontory  was  the  familiar  summit  of  Mount  Everts  beneath 
whose  friendly  shadow  he  had  dwelt  so  long.  All  the  vast  country 
within  this  grand  enclosure  of  mountain  and  lake,  scarred,  seamed  and 
ridged  with  grotesque  formations,  rocky  escarpments,  hillocks,  lakes 
and  steaming  springs  produced  by  the  volcanic  agency  of  former  ages 
la\'  spread  before  him  like  a  vast  panorama. 

Lost  in  wonder  and  admiration  at  this  vast  world  of  beauty  he 
nearly  forgot  his  own  sense  of  want  and  suffering.  He  kindled  a  fire 
on  the  beach,  and  removing  the  stiffened  slippers  from  his  feet,  attached 
them  to  his  belt  and  wandered  barefoot  over  the  soft  and  yielding  sand 
of  the  shore  gathering  wood  for  the  night. 

At  length,  sitting  by  the  fire,  conscious  of  the  need  of  protecting 
his  festering  feet  from  the  cold  night  atmosphere,  he  sought  his  belt 
for  the  slippers  and  one  was  gone.  In  gathering  the  wood  it  had  been 
lost.  Darkness  was  closing  around,  and  the  knowledge  that  one  foot 
would  be  exposed  to  the  freezing  night  air  was  surely  disheartening. 
For  more  than  an  hour  he  searched  in  vain  among  fallen  trees  and 
bushes,  up  the  hillsides  and  along  the  beach  with  flaming  brands  for 
the  precious  article  without  which  not  a  day  of  travel  could  be  made. 
But  no  language  can  describe  his  joy  when  at  length  he  discovered  it 
beneath  a  limb  that  had  torn  it,  as  he  passed,  from  his  belt. 


584  ECHOES    FUOM    TUt;    UOLKY    MOUNTAINS. 

Passing  a  night  of  refreshing  sleep,  he  started  along  the  beach  in 
search  of  a  camp  which  he  believed  he  would  fin4,  containing  food  for 
his  necessities  and  direction  what  to  do.  This  camp  he  found,  but  no 
food  or  notice  of  the  movements  of  his  companions.  A  dinner  fork, 
which  proved  of  intinite  service  in  digging  roots,  and  a  half-pint  yeast 
powder  can,  which  he  converted  into  a  drinking-cup  and  dinner- pot, 
were  the  only  evidences  that  the  spot  had  ever  been  visited  b}"  civilized 


"HE  BEHELD  THE  BLAZING  EYES  OF  A  FOREST  MONSTER.' 

man.  It  never  occurred  to  him  that  they  had  cached  food  (which  they 
did)  at  several  spots  near  his  point  of  departure.  He  left  the  camp  in 
deep  dejection,  attempting  to  follow  their  trail  to  the  Madison.  After 
a  careful  ins|3ection  of  the  trail  he  became  satisfied  of  a  retrograde 
movement  on  their  part,  and  consequently  retraced  his  own  steps  along 
the  beach.  He  built  a  fire  for  thenight  and  a  bower  of  pine  branches  to 
protect  him  from  the  wind  now  blowing  violently,  and  creeping  under 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  585 

it  soon  fell  asleep.  During  the  night  he  was  aroused  by  the  snapping 
and  cracking  of  the  burning  foliage,  and  found  his  shelter  and  the 
adjacent  forest  on  lire.  While  malting  his  escape  from  the  semicircle 
of  flame  by  Avhich  he  was  surrounded,  his  left  hand  was  badly  burned 
and  his  hair  singed  closer  than  a  barber's  shave.  However,  the 
chief  disaster  of  this  fire  was  the  loss  of  his  buckle-tongue  knife,  his 
pin  fish-hook  and  his  fish-line.  Favored  by  the  gale  the  conflagration 
spread  in  oceans  of  flame,  and  with  lightening  swiftness  over  an  illimit- 
able expanse  of  territory,  filling  the  atmosphere  with  suffocating 
fumes,  and  driving  clouds  of  smoke,  and  leaving  a  broad  and  blackened 
trail  of  spectral  trunks  shorn  of  limbs  and  foliage,  to  mark  the  sweep 
of  its  fiery  devastation. 

Resolved  to  search  for  a  trail  no  longer,  when  daylight  dawned,  he 
struck  out  for  the  lowest  notch  of  the  Madison  Eange.  On  arriving  at 
its  base,  however,  he  scanned  hopelessly  its  unsurmountable  difficulties, 
It  was  but  an  endless  succession  of  inaccessible  peaks  and  precipices. 
No  friendly  canon  or  gorge  invited  such  an  effort  as  Avithin  his  power 
to  make,  to  scale  this  rocky  barrier.  A  feeling  of  helpless  despair 
came  over  him  as  he  thougjit  of  the  wasted  two  days'  journey  that 
brouofht  him  thither.  From  the  summit  of  a  commanding  hill  he  cast 
his  eye  along  the  only  route  that  now  appeared  practicable — down  the 
Yellowstone.  But  how  many  dreary  miles  of  forest  and  mountain 
filled  the  terrible  panorama !  If  he  could  but  find  a  pass  through  these 
mountains !  Twenty  miles  would  take  him  through  and  thirty  more 
restore  him  to  friends  and  abundance !  A  whole  day  now  was  con- 
sumed in  the  vain  attempt.  While  thus  engaged  another  of  those 
mental  visions  appeared  wliich  many  of  his  friends  have  misnamed 
insanity,  but  which  he  declares  to  have  been  an  act  of  Providence. 
The  spirit  of  an  old  clerical  friend,  for  whom  he  had  held  great  regard, 
seemed  standing  before  him  charged  with  advice  for  his  relief.  He 
spoke  to  him  in  a  tone  of  authority. 

"  Go  back  immediately  as  rapidly  as  your  strength  will  admit. 
There  is  no  food  here  or  means  of  escape.  To  attempt  to  scale  these 
rocks  is  madness !" 

'•  Doctor, "  he  rejoined,  "  the  distance  is  too  great.  I  can  not  live  to 
travel  it!  " 

"  Say  not  so.  Your  life  depends  upon  the  effort.  Return  at  once. 
Start  now,  lest  vour  resolution  falter.     Travel  as  fast  and  as  far  as 


586  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

possible — it  is  your  only  chance.  Your  power  of  endurance  will  carry 
jou  through.  I  will  accompany  you.  Put  your  trust  in  heaven. 
Ilelp  N'ourself  and  God  will  help  you  !  '*  ^ 

Overcome  b\'^  these  and  other  pleasant  reflections  and  delighted 
with  the  idea  of  having  a  companion,  he  plodded  his  way  over  the  road 
he  had  come.  Resting  for  the  night  in  comfort,  by  a  fire  he  had  little 
trouble  to  build,  he  resumed  his  journey  with  the  rising  sun.  "When- 
ever he  WIS  disposed  to  question  the  wisdom  of  the  change  of  routes 
his  old  friend  appeared  with  words  of  comfort  and  encouragement. 
At  the  close  of  the  two  succeeding  days  his  point  of  destination  was 
seemingly  as  far  from  him  as  when  he  took  leave  of  the  Madison  Eange. 
and  when  cold  and  hungry  on  the  afternoon  of  the  fourth  day  he 
gathered  the  first  food  he  had  eaten  in  nearly  five  days  and  lay  down 
by  the  fire  of  his  night  camp,  he  had  almost  abandoned  all  hope  of 
being  saved.  At  daylight  he  was  on  the  river  trail  again,  and  thence 
clambering  through  fields  of  tangled  trunks,  which  seemed  intermin- 
able, passing  through  an  opening  in  the  forest  he  found  the  tip  of  a 
gull's  wingyet  fresh  and  sweet.  Making  a  fire  at  once  and  mashing 
the  bones  with  a  stone  he  made  a  half  pint  of  delicious  broth  in  his 
yeast  powder  box. 

lie  now  lost  all  sense  of  time.  Day  and  night  came  and  went  and 
were  numbered  onl}^  b}'^  the  growing  consciousness  that  he  was  grad- 
uallv^  starving.  He  felt  no  hunger  and  his  wounds  gave  him  no  pain. 
The  roots  which  had  supplied  food  had  suspended  digestion  and  their 
fibers  were  packed  in  his  stomach  in  a  comjiact  mass.  His  hours  of 
slumber,  however,  were  visited  by  the  most  luxurious  dreams.  Im- 
mense tables  in  gorgeously  decorated  restaurants  appeared  before 
him  loaded  with  the  most  tempting  viands.  With  his  own  hands  he 
frequently  prepared  the  daintiest  dishes,  and  apparently  the  entire 
night  would  be  spent  in  preparing  a  feast.  He  would  realize  the 
fatigue  attendant  upon  the  labor  of  roastmg,  boiling,  baking  and 
otherwise  preparing  the  vast  abundance  of  food  that  appeared  before 
him  in  his  hours  of  slumber. 

It  was  on  a  cold,  ffloorav  dav  that  he  arrived  at  the  falls.  The 
sky  was  overcast  with  clouds  and  the  atmosphere  was  keen  and  biting. 
The  sun  hid  his  face  and  denied  him  all  means  of  heat  and  warmth. 
The  sole  alternative  was  to  seek  shelter  in  the  thicket.  Then,  having 
interlaced  the  surrounding  brushwood  over  a  bed  of  fallen  foliage,  he 


EVERTS  RUSHING  FROM  THE  FOREST  FIRE. 

587 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


689 


lay  down  with  a  prayer  for  sleep  and  forgetf ulness.  Alas  !  neither 
came.  The  moaning  of  the  wind  through  the  pines,  mingling  with  the 
sullen  roar  of  the  falls,  was  strangely  in  unison  with  his  own  sad  feel- 
ings. The  cold  increased  through  the  night.  Only  constant  beating 
and  friction  of  his  limbs  saved  him  from  freezing.  In  the  morning  his 
right  arm  was  partially  paralyzed  and  his  limbs  so  stiffened  with  cold 
as  to  be  ahnost  immovable.  Fearing  paralysis,  with  the  appearance  of 
the  sun  he  kindled  with  his  lens  a  mighty  flame  and  fed  it  with  every 
dry  stick  within  his  reach. 


IMAGINARY  COMPANIONS. 

His  old  friend  and  adviser,  whose  presence  he  had  seen  and  felt  for 
some  days  past,  now  forsook  him  altogether.  But  new  companions 
appeared,  by  some  process  he  was  unable  to  explain,  in  his  arms,  legs 
and  stomach.  With  these  he  would  converse  for  hours  as  imaginary 
friends.  They  were  constantly  telling  him  of  their  wants.  The 
stomach  demanded  a  change  of  diet  and  incessantly  complained  of  the 
roots  with  which  he  was  fed.  He  tried  to  silence  him  with  promises, 
and,  failing  therein,  sought  to  intimidate  him  by  declaring,  as  a  sure 
result  of  negligence,  their  inability  to  reach  home.  All  to  no  purpose. 
He  was  all  the  way  through  a  continuous  torment.     The  other  members 


590  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOCXTAIXS. 

usually  concurred  with  Lim.  The  legs  begged  for  a  rest  and  the  arms 
complained  that  they  were  forced  to  perform  too  great  a  labor.  They 
appeared  to  be  perfectly  helpless  of  themselves  and  would  do  nothing 
for  one  another.  As  a  counterpoise  of  their  own  complaints,  however, 
whenever  thev  discovered  languor  in  him  they  were  not  slow  with 
words  of  cheer  and  encouragement.  Once  the  stomach  saved  him  from 
death  by  poison  by  accusing  him  in  severe  terms  of  attempting  to 
poison  him  with  minnows  he  had  found  in  a  warm  spring  on  the  hill- 
side, one  of  which  he  caught  and  ate  raw.  It  was  delicious  to  his 
taste  and  afterward  made  him  deathly  sick.  They  had  been  poisoned 
by  minerals  in  the  water.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  angry  words  of  the 
stomach  he  would  have  made  a  meal  of  the  minnows,  and  thus  have 
dietl  in  the  wilderness. 

A  gradual  mental  introversion  grew  upon  him  as  his  physical 
weakness  increased.  He  lost  sight  of  the  wonders  of  nature  that  at 
first  had  so  wrought  upon  him,  and  turned  his  thoughts  in  upon  him- 
self. He  dwelt  upon  his  fate  and  the  happiness  of  the  world  beyond. 
All  doubts  of  immortality  vanished  in  the  light  of  his  surroundinsr 
realities.  So  clear  were  these  CDnceptions  that  he  longed  for  death, 
not  so  much  as  an  escape  from  misery  as  the  beginning  of  happiness. 
StiU  he  wandered  on  in  the  attempt  at  escape.  At  many  of  the 
streams  on  his  journey  he  endeavored  to  catch  trout  with  a  hook  fash- 
ioned from  the  broken  rim  of  his  spectacles,  but  in  vain.  The  country 
was  full  of  game  with  no  means  on  his  part  to  kill  or  capture  the 
most  insignificant.  He  saw  large  herds  of  deer,  elk,  antelope,  occa- 
sionally a  bear,  and  many  smaller  animals,  while  numerous  flocks  of 
ducks,  geese,  swans  and  pelicans  inhabited  the  lakes  and  rivers. 

At  Tower  Falls  he  spent  the  first  half  of  a  day  in  capturing  a 
grasshopper  and  the  remainder  in  a  fruitless  effort  to  catch  a  mess  of 
trout  with  which  the  stream  abounded. 

Soon  after  leaving  Tower  Falls  he  entered  an  open  country. 
Pine  forests  and  windfalls  were  exchanged  for  sagebrush  and  desola- 
tion, with  isolated  clumps  of  dwarfed  trees  and  ravines  filled  with  the 
debris  of  adjacent  mountains.  A  storm  of  wind  and  snow  toward 
the  morning  nearly  extinguished  the  fire  of  his  first  camp  on  this  part 
of  his  route,  which  was  made  near  the  summit  of  a  tall  range  of  foot- 
hills, for  the  convenience  of  obtaining  wood.  When  he  arose  the 
ground  was  white  with  snow.     He  was  entirely  bewildered  and  had 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  591 

lost  his  course  of  travel.  The  sole  hope  now  was  to  find  the  river 
through  the  blinding  storm.  Fortunately,  after  a  scrambling  of  some 
hours  over  rocks  and  crests,  he  came  suddenly  upon  the  precipitous 
sides  of  the  caiion  through  which  the  current  flowed.  It  was  with 
great  labor  and  peril  that  he  descended  into  its  depths.  Refreshing 
himself  with  copioua  draughts  of  its  pure  waters,  he  sat  beside  the 
mysterious  stream  awaiting  the  abatement  of  the  storm.  Chilled  to 
the  marrow,  with  no  return  of  the  sun's  rays,  he  would,  without  fire, 
perish  from  cold  during  the  approaching  night.  The  only  course  now 
was  to  return  to  his  fire  on  the  summit  to  avoid  such  a  night  of  horror. 
At  some  places  the  caiion  was  nearly  perpendicular,  and  the  return  up 
its  craggy  sides  was  the  hardest  work  of  his  whole  journey.  Often  he 
would  lose  his  hold  and  slide  many  feet  downward  before  recovering 
his  grasp  upon  its  sides.  It  was  night  when  he  reached  his  fire, 
covered  with  bruises  and  his  tattered  clothing  well  nigh  rent  in  shreds. 
He  found  but  a  few  embers  in  the  ashes,  and  with  difficulty  kindled  a 
flame.  Here,  in  this  bleak  spot  on  the  mountain  side,  amid  snow, 
hail  and  rain,  and  the  fiercest  blasts  of  the  swelling  storm,  almost 
starved  and  frozen,  the  wretched  but  still  not  despairing  man  spent  two 
days  and  nights,  leaving  only  for  a  few  moments  at  a  time,  to  gather 
fuel  for  the  flame,  crawling  to  the  clump  of  trees  for  that  purpose. 
And  this  had  to  be  repeated  many  times  during  the  night  as  well  as 
the  day,  as  in  his  exhausted  condition  he  could  gather  but  little  at 
a  time.  Before  he  left  this  camp  he  stripped  his  arms  for  some 
purpose,  probably  to  nurse  a  bruise,  and  was  horrififid  at  their 
shrunken  condition.  Flesh  and  blood  apparently  had  left  them.  The 
skin  clung  to  the  bones  like  wet  parchment.  A  child's  hand  could 
have  clasped  them  from  wrist  to  shoulder.  Yet  said  this  brave  man, 
"It  is  death  to  remain,  I  can  not  perish  in  this  wilderness."  And  so 
he  hobbled  on  his  course  through  the  snow  that  now,  happily,  was 
melting  before  the  sun's  rays.  At  this  point  he  foiight  a  severe  battle 
with  his  rebellious  stomach.  Convinced  that  he  should  find  no  thistles 
in  the  open  country  he  had  filled  his  pouches  before  leaving  the  forest. 
The  supply  was  now  running  low,  and  there  were  yet  many  days  of 
heavy  mountain  travel  before  reaching  Botelers'  Ranch.  With  the 
most  careful  economy  it  could  last  but  two  or  three  days  longer.  He 
therefore  saw  the  necessity  of  placing  himself  and  imaginary 
companions  upon    allowance.     Immediately  thereupon,  the  conflict 


592  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

with  his  stomach  began,  which  continued  for  a  long  time  and  only 
ended  successfully  by  the  most  determined  firmness  on  his  part.  At 
first  he  talked  gently  to  the  complaining  compalQion,  tried  coaxmo'  and 
endeavored  to  pacifiy  him  with  kind  and  conciliatory  words.  This 
gentle  course,  however,  failed,  and  after  a  long  controversy  and  many 
bitter  words,  he  finally  succeeded  in  conquering  the  recalcitrant 
member  by  declaring  that  he  would  then  and  there  part  company  and 
leave  him  to  perish  in  the  wilderness.  This  had  the  desired  effect  and 
henceforth  he  remained  silent. 

In  this  condition,  while  ascending  a  steep  hill  he  fell  from  exhaus- 
tion into  the  sage  brush  without  the  power  to  arise,  and  soon  fell 
asleep.  He  could  not  divine  the  length  of  that  slumber,  but  on 
awakening  he  scrambled  to  his  feet  and  pursued  his  journey.  As 
night  drew  on  he  selected  a  camping  place,  gathered  wood  into  a  heap 
and  felt  for  his  lens  to  produce  the  life-spark  from  heaven.  It  was 
gone.  Hear  what  he  says:  "  If  the  earth  had  yawned  to  swallow  me, 
1  would  not  have  been  more  terrified.  The  only  chance  for  life  was 
lost.  The  last  hope  had  fled.  I  seemed  to  feel  the  grim  messenger, 
who  had  been  so  long  pursuing  me,  knocking  at  the  portals  of  my  heart 
as  I  lay  down  by  the  side  of  the  wood  pile  and  covered  myself  with 
limbs  and  sagebrush,  with  the  dreadful  conviction  that  my  struggle  for 
life  was  over  and  that  I  should  rise  no  more.  The  floodgates  of  misery 
seemed  now  to  be  opened  and  it  rushed  in  living  tide  upon  my  soul. 

As  calmness  returned  reason  resumed  her  empire.  I  summoned 
all  the  powers  of  my  memory,  thought  over  every  foot  of  the  days' 
travel,  and  concluded  that  the  glass  was  lost  while  sleeping  on  the 
ground.  Five  long  miles  over  the  hills  must  be  retraced  to  gain  it. 
There  was  no  alternative,  and  b\^  daylight  I  had  staggered  over  half  the 
distance.  I  found  the  lens  on  the  spot  where  I  had  slept.  Coincident 
of  my  journey  brought  with  it  more  of  joy  and  rehef." 

Returning  to  the  camp  of  the  previous  night  he  lighted  the  pile 
he  had  prei)ared  and  lay  down  for  a. night  of  rest.  It  was  very  cold, 
and  toward  morning  it  began  snowing.  Sleep  was  impossible,  and 
with  difficulty  he  kept  the  fire  alive.  When  daylight  dawned  he 
was  impressed  with  the  idea  that  he  must  go  forward  despite  the 
storm.  A  flash,  momentary  but  vivid,  came  over  him  that  he  would 
be  saved.  Snatching  a  lighted  brand  he  started  through  the  storm. 
In  the  afternoon  the  sun  shone  at  intervals.     Reaching  a  clump  of 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


593 


trees  he  prepared  a  camp  for  the  night  and  with  great  difficulty,  late 
in  the  day  when  all  hope  had  gone,  succeeded  in  striking  a  spark  from 
a  momentary  ray  of  sunlight,  and  thus  secured  fire  and  life. 

Resuming  his  journey  in  the  morning  in  a  storm  that  chilled  his 
nerves,  after  a  few  miles'  walk  a  coldness  seized  him  such  as  he  had 
never  before  felt.  He  attempted  in  vain  to  build  a  fire.  It  would  not 
burn.  Seizing  a  brand  he  staggered  blindly  on,  stopping  within  the 
shadow  of  every  rock  to  renew  his  life  energy.  A  solemn  conviction 
that  death  was  near,  that  at  each  pause  his  limbs  would  refuse  further 
service  and  that  he  should  sink  helpless  and  dying  to  the  ground, 
overwhelmed  him  with  terror.  Once  more  the  thought  flashed  upon 
his  mind  that  he  should  be  saved,  and  he  seemed  to  hear  a  voice  of 
command  to  "  struggle  on !"  Groping  along  the  side  of  a  hill  he 
became  suddenly  sensible  of  a  sharp  reflection,  as  of  burnished  steel 
and,  looking  up  through  half-closed  eyes,  two  rough  but  kindly  faces 
met  his  gaze. 

"Are  you  Mr.  Ev- 
erts?" said  one. 

"  Yes,"  he  replied, 
"all  that  is  left  of  me." 

"We  have  come  for 
you." 

"Who  sent  you?" 

"Judge  Lawrence 
and  other  friends." 

"God  bless  him, 
and  them  and  you ! " 
said  the  almost  dying 
man.  "  I  am  saved  !  " 
and  with  these  words 
he  fell  powerless  into 
the  arms  of  his  rescuers. 
He  was  saved  —  on  the 
very  brink  of  the  grave. 

Baronet  and  Prich- 
ette,  his  preservers,  soon 
restored  him  to  con- 
ciousness  by  the  usual  evert's  rescue. 


594:  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIlfS. 

appliances,  and  one  of  them  made  a  camp  upon  the  spot  and  ministered 
to  his  wants  and  watched  over  him,  wliile  the  other  went  to  Fort  Ellis, 
a  distance  of  seventy  miles  to  return  with  reuledies  to  restore  diges- 
tion and  an  ambulance  to  convey  him  to  that  post. 

In  a  few  days  he  was  able  to  be  moved  twenty  miles  down  the 
trail  to  the  cabin  of  some  miners  who  were  prospecting  in  that  country. 
Here  he  received  every  attention  they  could  bestow,  and  his  strength 
returned  with  broth  made  from  game  killed  near  bj^  but,  owing  to  the 
protracted  inaction  of  the  system  and  the  long  time  that  must  elapse 
before  the  return  of  Prichette  with  remedies,  his  friends  had  serious 
doubts  as  to  his  recovery.  In  this  condition  the  night  after  his  arrival  at 
the  cabin  there  came  an  old  hunter  whose  life  had  been  spent  in  the 
mountains.  He  was  searching  for  his  brother.  He  listened  with  tears 
to  the  story  of  the  patient's  sufferings,  but  when  told  of  the  present 
necessity  brightened  in  a  moment  and  said,  "  Why,  Lord  bless  you  I 
I  have  the  very  thing  you  want  !*' 

Leaving  the  cabin,  he  shortly  returned  with  a  sack  filled  with  the 
fat  of  a  bear,  which  he  had  killed  but  a  few  hours  before.  From  this 
he  rendered  out  a  pint  measure  of  oil.  which  the  patient  drank  at  a 
single  draught.  It  was  the  very  remedy  he  needed,  and  the  day  fol- 
lowing he  was  freed  from  pain,  with  appetite  and  digestion  re-estab- 
lished. All  that  he  now  needed  was  plenty  of  good  food  to  restore  his 
health  and  strength. 

In  two  days  more  he  left  his  kind  friends  with  a  feeling  of  deep 
regret.  Meeting  the  ambulance  on  the  wa}',  he  proceeded  to  Bozeman, 
where  among  old  friends  he  quickl}^  recovered,  and  in  due  time  returned 
to  his  home  in  Helena,  Montana. 


CHAPTER  XLL 

FIRST  DAYS  OF  NEVADA— STORY  OP  THE  SETTLEMENT,  AND  SCENES  AND  ADVENT- 
URES IN  SILVER  LAND-REVIEW  OF  ROSS  BROWNE'S  DESCRIPTION  OF  WASHOE. 

The  far-famed  Yirginia  City,  the  great  raining  capital  of  the  won- 
derful Washoe  district,  was  situated  on  the  slope  of  Mount  Davidson, 
and  as  seen  and  described  by  Ross  Browne,  one  of  the  earliest  silver- 
seekers  who  trod,  with  his  pack  on  his  back,  all  the  weary  road  from 
Strawberry  Flat  across  the  divide  to  Carson  City,  and  thence  to 
Washoe,  forms  a  striking  picture  of  primitive  civilization  and  the  hard- 
ships, sufferings  and  privations  endured  by  man  in  the  terrible  struggle 
and  excitement  attendant  upon  his  eager  search  for  sudden  wealth. 

A  rude  and  primitive  city,  built  of  frame  shanties,  tents  of  canvas; 
blankets,  sage  brush,  potato  sacks,  and  old  shirts,  with  empty  whisky 
barrels  for  chimneys;  a  city  of  mud  hovels,  coyote  holes,  pits  and 
shafts  from  which  smoke  issued  through  each  big  and  little  crevice; 
a  city  of  confusion,  where  piles  of  goods,  mingled  with  dirt  and  rub- 
bish, had  been  dumped  on  rocks,  in  the  hollows,  in  the  snow  and  mud, 
and  each  available  spot  where  an  earthly  landing  could  be  made,  as  if 
the  skies  overhead  had  suddenly  opened  and  rained  down  upon  Mount 
Davidson's  rocky  sides  all  the  dregs  of  civilization. 

The  open  spaces  called  streets  he  saw  filled  with  a  motley,  over- 
flowing multitude  of  grimy,  unwashed  miners  and  adventurers,  who 
deemed  it  an  affront  to  even  suggest  water,  either  as  a  beverage  or  a 
purifier. 

Some  were  engaged  in  arguing  a  suit  at  law  in  which  the  title  to 
a  mining  location  was  in  question.  Their  arguments  were  chiefly  in 
the  shape  of  empty  whisky  bottles  and  some  bull-dogs,  and  were  very 
effective  in  establishing  justice.  Others  stood  by  with  their  hands  on 
their  revolvers,  but  their  weapons  were  reserved  for  more  lofty 
occasions,  such  as  a  refusal  to  drink  or  taking  a  wrong  trick  at  cards. 

Toward  the  center  of  the  town  the  scene  changed  a  little,  and  it 
became  interesting  to  observe  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  place. 
Groups  of  speculators  were  gathered  on  the  corner  discussing  in 

696 


596 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 


earnest  tones  the  rise  and  fall  of  stocks,  and  miners  in  rough  garb  just 
in  from  the  "diggings"  were  exhibiting  "specimens"  of  croppings, 
and  offering  unheard-of  bargains  in  "  feet,"  ranging  all  the  wav  from 


MIXING  TOWN. 


ten  to  one  hundred  dollars  per  foot,  according  to  the  depth  of  the 
shaft,  or  prospecting  hole.  Bands  of  the  "  knowing  ones  " —  those  who 
had  captured  all  the  secrets  and  proposed  to  retain  them  unless  an 
equitable  division  should  be  made  of  the  proceeds  of  a  sale  —  gathered 
around  the  speculator  from  San  Francisco,  and  finally  carried  him  off 
in  triumph  to  close  a  wonderful  bargain  in  the  richest  yield.  Long- 
nosed,  black-haired  Hebrews,  with  their  customary  sagacity  and  love 
of  trade,  had  disposed  their  goods  and  chattels  for  sale  on  the  most 
accommodating  terms,  to  wit,  cash  and  three  thousand  per  cent,  profit 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  597 

on  the  first  investment.  Monte-dealers,  gamblers,  cut-throats,  thieves 
and  assassins  gathered  in  glee  around  the  gaming  tables,  and  bars 
running  in  full  blast  in  dingy-looking  saloons,  and  cast  their  nets  for 
the  untvary.  On  the  main  street  a  dashing  fellow  clad  in  Mexican 
style  on  horseback,  with  his  pocket  full  of  rocks  from  a  successful 
venture,  rushed  along  the  highway  swinging  his  reata  and  yelling  like 
a  mad  Indian,  until  finally  struck  by  a  sudden  and  terrific  blast  of 
wind  from  the  four  quarters  that  rolled  him  in  the  debris  of  capsized 
tents,  broken  sign-boards  and  billows  of  sand  and  grit  blown  from  the 
adjacent  gravel  banks.  Ross  Browne  said  the  whole  scene  was  essen- 
tially inffernal  in  every  aspect,  whether  viewed  from  the  Comstock 
Ledge  or  the  summit  of  Gold  Ilill. 

IsTobody  owned  anything  save  by  right  of  possession  and 
power  to  hold  it,  and  yet  trading  in  town  lots  went  on  to  an 
unlimited  degree.  Nobody  had  any  money,  yet  each  was  a  prospective 
millionaire.  Nobody  had  any  credit,  yet  everbody  bought  thousands 
of  feet  of  glittering  ore.  The  most  astounding  sales  were  made  daily 
in  the  most  famous  lodes  without  a  dollar  in  dust  or  a  silver  dime 
passing  between  to  bind  the  bargain.  Only  the  saloons  and  the 
gaming-tables  boasted  of  the  ready  cash. 

Every  particle  of  ground  covered  by  canvas,  boards,  or  baked 
mud,  was  crowded  to  suffocation.  Into  sleeping-houses,  20x30,  were 
jammed  from  150  to  200  human  beings  each  night,  at  a  dollar  a  head. 
Little  tents  accommodated  multitudes,  and  a  stall  in  a  stable  would 
have  been  a  luxur3\  Three  hundred  slumberers  nightly  filled  the  chief 
hostelry  with  the  euphonious  name  of  Hotel  de  Haystack.  From 
attic  to  the  earth  beneath  they  lay  in  solid  ranks,  like  winnows  in  the 
fields  of  sickled  grain.  On  all  sides  were  the  evidences  of  the  wild 
struggle,  and  all  things  were  in  consonance  wit*h  its  nature. 

The  deep  pits  on  the  hill-sides ;  the  blasted  and  barren  appearance 
of  the  whole  country;  the  unsightly  hodge-podge  of  a  town;  the  hor- 
rible confusion  of  tongues ;  the  roaring,  raving  drunkards  at  the  bar- 
rooms swilling  fiery  liquids  from  morning  till  night ;  the  flaring  and 
flaunting  gambling  saloons  filled  with  desperadoes  of  the  vilest  sort ; 
the  ceaseless  torrent  of  oaths  that  shocked  the  sensitive  ear  on  every 
side ;  the  mad  speculation,  the  wild,  gaunt  search  and  the  feverish 
thirst  for  gain — all  combined  to  give  a  forcible  impression  of  the 
unhallowed  character  of  the  place. 


598  ECHOES   FROM  THE   BOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

There  stood  the  murderer  who  had  killed  three  men  within  three 
weeks,  ready  for  his  fourth  victim.  By  his  side  was  the  bummer  with 
his  scarred  and  bloated  face  waiting  for  a  friendly  voice  to  call  him  to 
a  cocktaiL  Not  far  away  an  aged  and  decrepit  man,  a  speculator 
from  San  Francisco,  with  thin  locks,  unshaven  face,  matted  vdth  dirt, 
grasping  at  every  "  indication  "  with  all  the  fervor  of  youth,  as  if  he 
possessed  a  lease  of  life  for  a  cycle  of  years.  And,  around  them  all, 
moving  hither  and  thither,  with  hammers  and  stones  in  their  hands, 
jerking  one  another  aside  hurrying  to  the  Assay  office,  conning  over 
papers  and  uttering  mysterious  words  and  exchanging  mysterious 
signs,  were  a  thousand  crazy-looking  wretches — the  millionaires  of 
Washoe.  AU  day  long  and  all  night  long  the  terrible  noise  continued 
— a  Babel  in  Babylon — the  ears  distracted  with  the  interminable  jargon 
of  "  croppings,"  "  lodes,"  "  leads,"  "  indications,"  "  feet,"  "  dips," 
"  spurs  "  and  "  angles,"  and  the  nostrils  offended  with  the  mighty  odor 
of  foul  breath  and  boots,  old  pipes  and  filthy  blankets,  until  finally 
one  would  presume  the  outer  gates  of  hades  had  been  reached. 

There  were  also  lawyers,  doctors,  tradesmen,  bankers,  brokers, 
and  business  men  of  credit  and  revenues  on  Montgomery  street  and  else- 
where in  San  Francisco  who  were  now  engaged  in  the  same  ceaseless 
search  for  sudden  wealth.  Yes,  everyone  was  there  ;  of  all  shapes  and 
forms,  complexions  and  sizes,  aU  characters  and  conditions,  of  all  life 
estates,  the  high  and  low,  sinner  and  siren — all  save  the  saint — he  as 
yet  had  not  crossed  the  Divide.  The  atmosphere  was  not  congenial. 
All  were  there  in  the  same  eager  search  for  wealth. 

But  sickness  arising  from  hardship  and  exposure  and  the  mineral 
poison  contained  in  the  waters,  added  vastly  to  the  great  discomfort 
of  the  situation,  and  a  large  number  of  emigrants  died  from  want  of 
care  and  medical  attention. 

At  this  period  there  was  no  law  for  the  preservation  of  order  in 
the  district.  Some  mining  regulations  had  been  established  to  secure 
the  right  of  discovery  to  claimants ;  they  were,  however,  crude  and 
indefinite,  defining  in  each  district  according  to  the  caprices  of  the 
miners  and  alone  able  to  be  enforced  at  the  muzzle  of  the  shotgun 
In  some  of  these  districts  the  original  discoverer  of  a  vein  was  entitled 
to  400  running  feet  on  the  vein  discovered,  and  he  could  then  put 
down  the  names  of  as  many  friends  as  he  chose  for  200  feet  each. 
Notices  of  the  date  and  location  of  the  disco ver\"  had  to  be  posted  at 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  599 

certain  places  on  the  lead  and  recorded  in  the  office  of  the  Mining 
Kecorder  of  the  district,  which  said  office  is  the  first  created  in 
each  mining  district.  Great  confusion  existed,  however,  from  the 
dips,  spurs  and  angles  of  ledges  which,  according  to  mining  law,  follow 
the  lead,  running  into  adjacent  ledges,  and  claim  being  made  therefor 
by  the  owners  of  said  dips,  spurs  and  angles  and  vice  versa,  settled 
sometimes  in  the  mining  courts  but  more  frequently  by  the  revolver. 

With  the  opening  of  spring  and  the  disappearance  of  the  snow, 
there  came  a  still  greater  influx  of  emigrants,  and  a  multitude  of  "pros- 
pecting "  parties  scoured  the  hills  and  mountains  in  search  of  the  pre- 
cious ore.  There  was  no  end  to  the  discoveries  alleged  to  be  daily  made. 
Six  miles  below  Virginia  w^ere  located  the  "Flowery  Diggings"  believed 
to  contain  boundless  wealth.  So  great  was  the  excitement  and  so  vast 
the  hope  that  the  whole  country  was  staked  off  for  thirty  miles.  If  a 
man  could  not  go  himself  he  gave  another  an  "outfit"  and  sent  him  as 
a  substitute  who  was  expected  honestly  to  devide  the  wealth  he  should 
thereby  acquire  by  "  striking  it  rich."  The  rich  ore  extended  in  every 
direction.  At  least  it  was  thus  presumed  by  those  who  were  thor- 
oughly imbued  with  the  belief  in  the  ultimate  destiny  of  the  place. 
And  sometimes  this  broad  hope  would  be  strengthened  by  an  act  of 
mere  chance.  Ross  Browne  tells  of  a  man  in  Virginia  City  who  had 
been  engaged  in  digging  a  cellar  and  found  rich  indications.  He  im- 
mediately laid  claim  to  a  whole  street  covered  with  houses,  and  the 
excitement  produced  by  this  "streak  of  luck"  was  perfectly  frantic. 
Hundreds  went  to  work  grubbing  up  the  ground  under  their  own  and 
their  neighbor's  tents,  and  it  was  not  long  beforethe  whole  city  seemed 
in  a  fair  way  of  being  undermined.  However  the  incentive  was  great. 
A  man  striking  it  rich  to-day  was  considered  a  millionaire  to-morrow, 
and  his  credit  was  instantly  strengthened.  The  dips,  spurs  and  angles 
of  these  various  discoveries  covered  an  area  of  six  miles  at  and  around 
the  city.  The  owners  of  city  lots  vainly  protested,  the  mining  law  was 
paramount  in  the  absence  of  all  other  law.  There  was  no  security  for 
person  or  property  save  that  of  might,  and  the  vi  et  armis  of  the  moun- 
tain miner  was  the  eternal  law  of  his  compensation. 

Not  only  lawyers,  doctors  and  men  of  many  trades  and  profes- 
sions abounded  in  Virginia  City,  but  the  scientist  was  there  many 
times  multiplied  in  the  form  of  the  assayer.  His  scientific  pursuits, 
his  knowledge  of  geology,  and  his  general  information,  as  well  as  that 


GOO 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


of  a  special  character,  made  Lim  a  prominent  figure  in  all  gatherings 
and  discoveries.  Although  their  offices  were  co-extensive  with  the 
saloons  and  the  assayer  worked  hand  in  hand -'with  the  barkeeper,  he 
was  never  idle,  always  in  demand  and  ever  cheerfully  engaged  in  his 
lalx)rs.  His  establishment  consisted  of  a  tent,  a  furnace,  half  a  dozen 
crucibles  sometimes  augmented  b\'  as  many  more  by  pressure  of 
business,  a  bottle  or  two  of  acids,  a  hammer  and  retort,  and  the  ever- 
waiting  anxious 
crowd  of  expectant 
millionaires,  who 
never  failed  for  a 
proper  considera- 
tion to  realize  from 
the  assay  their 
dreams  of  wealth 
that  fancy  builded 
while  wrapped  in 
slumber,  coiled  like 
a  snake  amid  the 
multitude  of  dream- 
ers who  lay  on  the 
earth  floor  of  Was- 
hoe's primitive  ho- 
tel.   . 

The  suffering 
and  hardship  endur- 
ed during  the  first 
winter  in  TTashoe 
was  beyond  con 
ception.  Hundreds 
were  prostrated  with  sevei'e  illness,  from  which  many  never  recovered. 
Stricken  by  disease,  to  save  his  life  Ross  Browne  started,  with  his  pack 
on  his  back,  for  Carson  City.  He  thus  describes  the  journe}':  The 
mountains  were  covered  with  snow,  not  very  deep,  but  soft  and  slip- 
pery. Suffering  with  rheumatism,  his  progress  was  slow  and  often  so 
difficult  that  it  required  a  great  effort  of  will  to  avoid  stopping  alto- 
gether. Once  he  lay  down  under  a  cedai"  tree,  thinking  that  the  end 
had  come  at  last,  but  was  revived  from  a  flask  of  brandy  of  a  Dutch 


SUCCOR  OF  ROSS  BROWNE  BY  THE  JEW. 


ECHOES    FROM   THH     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  601 

Jew  who  had  come  upon  him  in  the  nick  of  time  and  thus  saved  his  life. 
It  was  the  same  Dutch  Jew  who  had  stolen  his  stockings  while  asleep 
at  Strawberry  Flat  some  months  before,  and  who  afterward  stole  his 
boots  at  Woodford.  In  due  time  they  reached  Carson  Eiver.  A  part  of 
the  road  to  Carson  Yalley  was  a  complete  desert,  scarcely  a  blade  of 
grass  to  be  seen.  Shriveled  sage  bushes  scattered  at  intervals  were  the 
only  signs  of  vegetation.  Even  the  rabbits  and  the  sage-hens  had 
abandoned  the  country.  All  the  open  spaces  resembled  the  precincts 
of  slaughter-houses.  Cattle  lay  dead  in  every  direction,  their  skull?, 
bones  and  carcasses  giving  an  exceedingly  desolate  appearance  to  the 
same.  Near  the  river  it  was  a  mass  of  corruption.  Hundreds  upon  hun- 
dreds of  rotting  carcasses  and  bleached  skeletons  dotted  the  banks,  or  lay 
in  great  mounds  where  they  had  gathered  for  mutual  warmth  and  died 
from  starvation.  The  effluvia  filled  the  air  for  miles.  Thousands  of 
buzzards  had  gathered  for  the  feast,  and,  gorged  with  the  putrid  flesh, 
sat  stupefied  on  the  foul  masses.  In  the  slough  bordering  on  the  river 
oxen,  cows  and  horses  were  buried  up  to  the  neck  where  they  had 
striven  to  get  the  water,  but  from  excess  of  weakness  had  failed  to  get 
back  to  the  solid  earth.  Some  were  already  dead,  others  dying. 
Around  the  latter  hovered  the  buzzards,  scarcely  awaiting  the 
extinction  of  life  ere  they  pierced  them  with  their  beaks  and  tore  their 
eyes  from  their  sockets.  On  the  dry  plains  hundreds  of  cattle  had 
perished  likewise  from  starvation.  The  terrible  winter  and  prolonged 
snows  had  destroyed  or  hidden  what  little  vegetation  remained. 
Settlers  who  had  saved  sufficient  hay  for  their  stock  found  it  more 
profitable  to  sell  it  to  others  at  $300  per  ton  and  let  their  own  stock 
perish.  Horses,  oxen  and  cows  shared  the  same  fate.  Living  skel- 
etons of  horses  performed  the  work  of  transportation.  In  Virginia 
City  it  was  akin  to  impossibility  to  obtain  a  pound  of  grain  at  any 
price.  Men  who  owned  valuable  blooded  animals  offered  fabulous 
sums  for  feed  to  preserve  their  lives.  Little  whisps  of  hay  sold  at 
sixty  cents  per  pound,  and  barley,  at  a  dollar  per  pound,  could  scarcely 
be  obtained.  One  man  who  owned  a  favorite  animal  fed  it  on  bread 
to  preserve  its  life,  for  which  he  paid  fifty  cents  a  loaf  about  the  size 
of  biscuits.  Valuable  horses  could  not  be  sold  for  a  tenth  of  their 
value,  and  there  were  none  insane  enough  to  abandon  their  wild  hunt 
after  "claims,"  from  which  they  should  realize  millions  in  a  few 
months  to  go  across  the  mountains  for  horse  feed,  and  so  the  poor 
brutes  starved  to  death. 


602  ECHOES   FROM  THE  ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

Notwithstanding  all  this  business  Babel,  wild-cat  transactions  and 
transfers  of  untold  millions  of  wealth  in  glittering  ore,  all  on  paper, 
time  developed  the  fact  that  Washoe  was  one  of  the  richest  mining 
ciimps  the  luck  of  man  ever  struck.  Many  of  these  earh^  visions  were 
fully  realized ;  perhaps  not  by  those  who  dreamed  them  while  wrapped 
in  slumbers  coiled  in  a  co\'ote  hole,  but  that  other  class  who  always 
come  after  the  first  great  excitement  and  reap  what  the  genius  or 
chance  of  others  who  had  sown  amid  hunger,  cold,  perhaps  starva- 
tion. Silver  was  found  in  abundance.  The  Comstock  lead  became 
in  time  the  most  famous  in  the  world,  and  men  are  still  delving  after 
its  hidden  wealth  with  the  same  eager  desire  that  characterized  its 
earlier  owners.  In  those  early  days,  long  before  the  bonanza  was 
dreamed  of,  great  quantities  of  the  richest  ore  were  taken  from  its 
depths  and  shipped  on  mules'  backs  to  San  Francisco,  although  it  cost 
$600  to  transport  each  ton  to  that  place.  The  yield,  however,  was 
from  $1,200  to  $2,500  per  ton,  and  it  was  a  paying  investment  to 
transport  the  ore  to  that  distant  point. 

Many  of  the  leading  minds  of  those  days  you  hear  nothing  about 
now.  Another  generation  has  grown  up  since  their  fathers  delved  in 
Ophir  and  Lady  Bryant,  and  sung  the  praises  of  the  great  bonanza. 
They  alone  survive  among  aU  those  of  former  greatness.  But  in  those 
days,  wherever  you  went,  you  heard  the  crowd  singing  the  praises  of 
Billy  Chollar,  Hill  and  Xorcross,  Gould  and  Curry,  Savage  and  Waslioe, 
Belcher  and  Best,  Sides  Ground,  the  Murphy,  Kinney  and  Central,  the 
California,  Walsh  and  Bryant.  Ophir,  Mexican,  Xouman,  Scott 
Company,  Miller  &  Co.,  Bob  Allen,  and  a  hundred  others  of  far 
less  fame,  but  whose  euphonious  names  have  decended  to  posterity, 
such  as  "  The  Dead  Broke,"  "  The  Rip  Snorter,"  "  The  Ragged 
End,"  "The  Riff  Raff"  "The  Grab  Game,"  and  "The  Love's  Despair." 
Besides  all  these,  the  ground  for  forty  niiles  had  been  staked  in  a  direct 
line  with  the  Comstock,  and  declared  to  be  richer  than  the  original 
vein.  In  any  of  the  former  companies  you  could  purchase  a  mining 
foot  for  $200  to  $2,000,  according  to  its  reputed  value.  One  gentleman 
sold  out  his  business  and  all  his  assets,  and  with  the  proceeds  was 
enabled  to  purchase  eight  inches  of  the  Central.  Another  mortgaged 
his  property  to  buy  five  feet  in  the  "  Billy  Chollar ;"  both  expected  to 
become  millionaires  within  a  day,  a  week,  or  month  at  most.  The 
Flowery  Diggings  likewise  sustained  their  reputation  for  a  long  time ; 
but  the  Lady  Bryant  is  dead,  and  the  Mammoth  long  since  extinct. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  603 

I  have  alluded  to  those  who  come  after  the  honest  micer  has  made 
the  discover}^  and  reap  the  gains  that  should  have  been  his  alone.  But 
a  miner  is  a  singular  human  being.  He  is  likely  at  any  moment  to 
part  with  the  finest  prospect  for  a  very  small  consideration,  provided 
he  can't  get  more.  So  it  was  with  Washoe.  Comstock  never  made  a 
thousand  dollars  out  of  his  vast  discovery.  The  speculators  got  it  all. 
They  formed  a  company,  ran  up  the  stock  to  a  lofty  figure,  sold  to  the 
highest  bidder,  and  then  repossessed  themselves  of  the  stock  by  start- 
ing a  false  rumor  concerning  the  value  of  the  mine,  depressing  the 
stock  to  an  insignificant  figure  and  thus  obtained  for  almost  nothing 
what  they  had  but  recently  sold  at  a  most  exorbitant  sum.  Thus  it 
was  with  the  Comstock.  The  story  was  put  afloat  by  the  larger  own- 
ers and  speculators  that  base  metal  had  been  found,  but  to  what  extent 
nobody  could  ssij.  It  burst  upon  the  public  like  a  shell  and  ran  like 
wildfire.  If  the  Comstock  was  worthless,  what  of  the  others  ?  The 
excitement  was  then  terrific.  Every  holder  of  Washoe  mining  stock 
wanted  to  sell  instantly,  although  but  yesterday  he  deemed  himself  a 
millionaire,  or  on  the  highway  to  immense  fortune,  ^o  purchasers 
could  be  found — everybody  wanted  to  sell.  But  yesterday  Comstock 
feet  were  $1,000  each ;  to-day  they  had  fallen  to  $5,  and  no  sales 
reported  on  the  board.  The  Miller  feU  50  per  cent,  in  a  day  and  the 
outside  leads  could  not  be  given  away.  IN'obody  wanted  to  be  known 
as  a  fool  who  had  been  gulled  in  Washoe  stocks.  Ah,  the  gullibility 
of  the  public !  They  did  not  see  through  the  dodge  of  the  wicked 
speculators.  The  mines  of  Washoe  were  never  more  profitable  than 
when  the  story  of  "  base  metal "  was  started  to  depress  the  stock. 
When  everybody  believed  that  the  gigantic  Washoe  speculation  had 
burst  like  a  bubble  -on  the  waters,  and  the  stock  fell  to  nothing,  the 
agents  of  the  keen  speculators  bought  them  in  huge  blocks.  They  had 
elevated  them  to  a  thousand  a  share,  "  bucked  them  down  "  to  a  dollar 
or  two,  repurchased  them  at  this  figure,  and  once  again  their  own,  the 
silver  came  suddenly  again  to  the  surface,  and  once  more  the  wild 
scramble  began,  and  millions  were  made  by  this  means  of  fraud  which 
the  world  calls  a  shrewd  dodge. 

Other  means  were  likewise  adopted  to  obtain  sole  possession  of  a 
valuable  mine — one  of  which  was  the  process  of  "  freezing  out ''  the 
holders  of  a  small  amount  of  stock,  by  a  system  of  large  and  continuous 
assessments,  ostensibly  for  working  the  mine,  but  in  reality  to  obtain 


C04  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

possession  of  the  stock  by  the  non-payment  of  the  huge  assessments. 
Others  rushed  into  litigation  to  arouse  excitement  and  increase  the 
interest  of  the  public  in  the  mine.  Ko  mine  in  Nevada  was  worth 
much  on  the  stock  board  until  a  dozen  suits  at  law  for  possession  had 
covered  it  with  renown,  and  companies  were  even  formed  to  prosecute 
"  fighting  titles."  To  those  unacquainted  with  the  various  forms  of 
mining  litigation  and  the  methods  employed  to  hold  or  repossess  the 
veins  of  hidden  wealth,  the  story  of  personal  conflict  may  appear 
tinged  with  improbability. 

So  intense  are  the  feuds  arising  from  conflicting  claims — from 
"the  dips,  spurs  and  angles"  theory  that  the  records  of  the  court 
are  filled  with  suits  and  every  suit  "breeds  another  breed  of 
suits."  Litigants  crowd  the  courts.  Companies  are  arrayed  one 
against  the  other,  and  the  whole  community  take  sides  one  way  or 
another.  The  best  legal  talent  is  employed  at  most  exorbitant  sums, 
and  sometimes  the  whole  value  of  the  property  in  litigation  is  expended 
in  suits  to  establish  the  validity  of  title.  So  bitter  are  the  feuds  engen- 
dered by  these  Utigations  that  the  "  cause  "  is  frequentl}'^  removed  from 
the  court  to  the  field,  and  more  summary  proceedings  usurp  the  powers 
of  the  judiciary.  This  method  is  the  employment  of  a  class  of  outlaws 
whose  desperate  character  has  been  firmly  established  by  numerous 
contests  at  the  pistol's  point,  and  who  are  known  in  the  community  as 
"roughs,"  to  hold  the  property  against  any  intrusion,  legal  or  other- 
wise by  the  contending  party.  Of  course  the  other  party  to  the  suit 
is  not  to  be  thus  outwitted,  and  they  immediately  proceed  to  the  same 
extremity  and  engage  the  services  of  a  still  more  renowned  band  of 
"  fighting  men,"  each  of  whom  has  established  his  reputation  for 
courage  and  "  trigger  quickness  "  by  the  slaughter  of  a  dozen  men  in 
gambling  affrays  and  saloon  brawls.  On  approaching  the  "scene  of 
litigation"  they  are  met  by  the  fire  of  the  party  who  "hold  the  fort," 
and  then  begins  a  desperate  hand-to-hand  encounter  which  rages  per- 
haps for  many  days  with  varying  suceess  according  to  the  strength 
and  skill  of  the  contending  bands,  and  the  extent  and  character  of  the 
re-enforcements  afforded  each.  Many  are  ofttimes  wounded,  and 
frequently  some  are  killed,  but  that  matters  but  little.  They  are  pro- 
fessional fighters ;  it  is  their  business ;  they  take  all  the  chances  and 
are  remunerated  accordinjrl  v.  What  if  some  are  killed  ?  There  are  fewer 
to  divide  the  swag.    What  i "  they  do  go  about  with  their  noses  and 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIN'S.  605 

ears  shot  off  and  an  eye  gouged  out?  It  is  an  emblem  of  personal 
daring,  and  the  community  hold  them  in  high  esteem.  Eoss  Browne 
said  of  one  of  these  gentlemanly  sanguinary  Professors :  "  I  am  on 
terms  of  intimacy  with  him  and  regard  him  as  a  man  of  great  personal 
suavity.  I  take  special  care,  however,  not  to  irritate  him  by  any  differ- 
ance  of  opinion  touching  any  subject  under  discussion,  nor  by  alluding 
to  the  loss  of  his  nose  which  has  been  shot  off  close  to  his  face.  It 
usually  costs  me  four  bits  to  remove  a  shadow  from  his  brow  and  a 
dollar  more  to  get  him  enthusiastic  in  his  reminiscences  of  human 
butchery." 

Sometimes  these  suits  are  adjusted,  after  endless  litigation,  by  a 
referee,  some  honest  gentlemanly  member  of  the  bar  or  church  "  in 
whom  everybody  has  confidence  until  his  decision  is  rendered,  and 
then  comes  the  explosion." 

From  1861  to  1864  the  busy  era  of  adventure,  enterprise  and  toil 
in  llTevada  was  mingled  with  a  riot  of  speculation,  and  the  whole 
country  was  converted  into  a  great  fraudulent  stock  exchange.  The 
rich  yield  of  the  Comstock  Ledge,  the  development  of  the  Esmeralda 
region,  discovered  in  1861,  the  valuable  quartz  mines  of  Humboldt 
county,  and  the  promise  of  a  vast  harvest  of  wealth  from  the  Keese 
River  country,  all  of  which  was  exaggerated  many  fold  rendered  the 
public  mind  frantic  on  the  subject  of  silver  mining,  and  stock  gam- 
bling on  a  gigantic  scale  took  the  place  of  honest,  legitimate  enterprise. 
Hundreds  of  companies,  all  on  paper,  with  capital  ranging  from 
$500,000  to  $5,000,000,  were  formed  in  l^evada  and  California.  Every 
body  in  every  business  grew  wild  with  the  hope  of  acquiring  sudden 
wealth.  Merchants,  clerks,  professional  men,  mechanics,  laborers  and 
servant  girls  in  all  the  cities,  towns  and  settlements  sought  investments 
in  the  mines  of  Silverland,  by  purchasing  the  worthless  wild-cat  stocks 
of  these  vast  fraudulent  companies.  Montgomery  Street,  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  C  Street,  Virginia  City,  were  hourly  thronged  with  busy 
crowds  buying  and  selling  stock.  Three  magnificently  furnished  stock 
board  rooms  were  in  full  operation  in  San  Francisco,  and  every 
city  of  any  size  in  California  owned  its  own  stock  board.  In  Virginia 
City  there  were  four,  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  were  made 
in  a  day.  Every  means  known  to  the  wily  gambler  in  stocks  were 
resorted  to  to  elevate  or  depress  the  stock  of  these  companies.  The  pop- 
alation  of  Yirginia  City  ran  up  to  20,000.     Town  lots  sold  for  $400  per 


606  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    MOUNTAIXS. 

front  foot,  and  buildings  were  erected  with  lumber  purchased  at  $500 
per  1,000  feet  in  gold,  and  were  rented  at  10  per  cent,  on  the  invest- 
ment. But  it  was  all  wQd  gambling  and  the  most  insane  species  of 
speculation.  Xot  one  in  a  hundred  of  these  mines  was  ever  worked 
or  intended  to  be  developed  by  the  companies  organized  upon  their 
barren  rocks.  The  bubble  burst  late  in  the  spring  of  1864,  and  the 
disaster  and  ruin  was  wide-spread,  involving  aU  the  leading  stocks,  as 
well  as  the  wild  cat.  Gould  &  Curry  shot  down  from  $6,400  to  $840 
per  foot ;  Ophir,  from  $4,000  to  $400  ;  while  the  "  wild  cats"  were  buried 
in  a  common  grave.  The  good  went  with  the  bad.  All  over  the  min- 
ing districts  of  Xevada  were  to  be  seen  hundreds  of  partially  opened 
muies,  once  of  recognized  value,  but  utterly  valueless,  with  their  shares 
quoted  at  a  nominal  value.  The  sound  of  industry  ceased,  their  shafts 
filled  with  water,  their  galleries  untrod  by  miner  or  unfretted  b}'^  pick 
or  bar.  Not  a  single  assessment  could  be  gathered  from  the  disheartened 
holders  of  stock  to  preserve  from  immediate  decay  and  ultimate  ruin 
the  works  that  had  cost  hundreds  of  thousands  to  create.  And  yet  the 
mines  were  as  rich  as  ever,  and  perhaps  just  beyond  a  thin  veil  of  rock 
lay  hidden  the  glittering  deposit  of  silver,  the  mighty  bonanza  that 
would  have  enriched  the  multitude  and  made  millionaires  of  the  prin- 
cipal holders.  A  lucky  chance  ofttimes  decides  the  fate  of  monarchs 
and  of  empires,  and  so  it  might  have  been  with  many  of  "Washoe's 
mines,  had  their  early  owners  but  driven  their  picks  a  little  deeper 
before  the  day  of  abandonment  arrived. 

Still  there  is  another  side  to  the  story  of  mining.  The  Mexicans 
have  a  proverb  that  "  it  takes  a  mine  to  work  a  mine; "  this  is  true  in 
many  respects.  To  run  a  tunnel  or  sink  a  shaft,  frequently  blasted 
through  solid  rock  for  500  feet,  will  consume  the  labor  of  six  men  for 
six  months.  Grenerally  large  quantities  of  water  are  struck,  which 
require  expensive  pumping  machinery.  Drifts  and  galleries  must  be 
cut  and  safely  timbered  to  prevent  caving  in.  To  open,  drain  and 
thoroughly  prospect  a  first-class  silver  mine,  will  cost  from  $50,000  to 
$100,000.  It  is  nevertheless  true  that  a  mine  opened  at  a  cost 
of  $100,000  may  yield  a  mUlion  each  year  and  pay  dividends  of  over 
100  per  cent,  on  the  original  investment.  But  the  majority  of  mines 
do  not  pay  over  20  per  cent,  profit  on  the  gross  value  of  the  bullion 
extracted,  and  many  do  not  average  that  amount.  The  Gould  <fe  Curry 
mine  produced  during  one  year  three-fourths  of  a  million  per  month  in 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS.  607 

bullion  bars,  and  the  dividends  to  the  stock-holders  during  that  period 
were  not  over  $200,000  per  month.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  there" 
fore,  that  the  discoverers  of  the  richest  mines,  generally  poor  men,  do 
not  reap  any  part  of  the  subsequent  harvest.  They  are  compelled  to 
part  with  their  interests  for  a  trifle  to  those  who  possess  the  capital  to 
develop  the  hidden  wealth.  Such  has  been  and  ever  will  be  the 
history  of  mining.  Washoe  was  no  exception  to  this  rule.  Comstock, 
after  his  great  discover}'",  was  so  poor  as  to  be  compelled  to  leave  the 
scene  of  his  great  discovery  for  other  fields,  and  mined  with  indifferent 
success  in  the  Boise  country.  Gould,  the  discoverer  of  the  great 
Gould  &  Curry  ledge,  afterward  cut  shingles  for  a  living,  and  Billy 
Chollar,  the  locator  of  the  famous  Chollar  mine,  at  one  time  worth 
$2,000,000  or  $3,000,000,  continued  to  prospect  for  a  long  time 
and  gained  but  a  precarious  living.  Such,  indeed,  is  the  history  of  the 
men  who  first  brought  the  great  Washoe  District  to  the  notice  of 
mankind. 


CHAPTER  XLII. 

WASHOE  AXD  REESE  BIVER— MANY    INTERESTING    DESCRIPTIONS   OF   LIFE   IN 
THEIR   EARLY   SETTLEMEN-T. 

Such  was  Washoe  in  early  times.  When  it  was  my  fortune  to 
visit  its  memorable  precincts  a  half  a  dozen  years  thereafter,  the  change 
in  some  respects  was  great.  Virginia  had  grown  to  be  an  emporium 
of  trade  resembling  a  metropolitan  city.  Large  and  substantial 
houses  of  brick  and  stone,  some  of  them  four  stories  high,  had  taken 
the  place  of  sage-brush  tents  and  mud  hovels,  which  Eoss  Browne  had 
so  vividly  described.  Gold  Hill  had  likewise  risen  to  the  proportions 
of  a  city,  and  was,  in  fact,  part  and  parcel  of  Virginia.  Everywhere 
the  evidences  of  a  more  refined,  yet  busy  life  were  presented  in  full 
force.  Engine  houses  shaking  with  the  motion  of  their  ponderous 
machinery  were  lodged  in  almost  inaccessible  points ;  quartz  mills  lined 
the  canon,  and  well-constructed  buildings  of  brick  were  on  either 
side  of  the  main  street.  The  entire  hill  appeared  honeycombed  with 
tunnels,  shafts  and  abrasures  that  told  of  the  immense  toil  the  hand  of 
industry  had  laid  upon  its  barren  sides.  There  were  hotels,  telegraph 
and  express  offices,  stores  of  all  kinds,  saloons  and  restaurants,  and 
even  a  newspaper  to  record  the  scenes  and  transactions  of  daily  occur- 
rence. Between  Gold  Hill  and  Virginia  a  continuous  scene  of  toil 
met  the  eye  as  we  wandered  on  over  the  historic  levels.  The  same 
rough  miners  were  at  work,  ripping  open  at  almost  every  available 
point  the  sides  of  the  grand  old  mountain,  while  the  music  of  many 
mills  was  heard  stamping  and  crushing  with  their  ponderous  hammers 
the  rich  ores  from  the  mountain's  veins  and  arteries.  Within  the 
narrow  streets  of  Virginia  were  beheld  again  the  evidences  of  business 
prosperity  founded  upon  its  silver  wealth.  Coyote  caves  had  been 
converted  into  ornamental  homes.  Palaces  of  hotels  and  stores  com- 
pared with  those  of  the  early  day,  met  our  inquiring  view.  Busy 
throngs  of  men  gathered  everywhere  in  pursuit  of  the  one  common 
object  —  wealth.  Great  trains  of  freight  wagons  labored  along, 
heavily  ladened  with  ore  for  the  mills  or  merchandise  for  the  stores. 

ao» 


ECHOKS    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  609 

For  a  great  distance  the  liill  was  honeycombed,  and  engines  clattered 
and  black  smoke-stacks  belched  their  clouds  of  smoke  upon  the  ambient 
air,  and  batteries  were  hammering  and  pulverizing  the  rich  ore. 
Houses  were  springing  up  everywhere,  and  the  sound  of  workmen's 
tools  vied  with  the  "  music  of  the  mill."  Stores  w^ere  filled  to  reple- 
tion, with  every  variety  of  merchandise,  the  auctioneer  was  knocking 
down  and  off  his  goods,  gaudy  saloons  with  wide  open  doors  exhibited 
a  throng  of  thirsty  men  worshipping  at  the  shrine  of  Bacchus,  and 
painted  Jezebels  sang  ribald  songs  and  danced  with  the  "  honest  miner  " 
in  a  drunjien  orgy  to  the  wheezing  tunes,  of  the  "  hurdy-gurdy ;  "  new 
theaters  were  preparing  for  the  evening  entertainment,  while  news- 
boys cried  aloud  the  contents  of  the  daily  press.  Along  the  streets 
and  over  the  rocks  and  amid  the  storm  of  flying  dust  rushed  the 
rattling  stage-coach,  with  its  live  freight  and  load  of  precious  metal 
all  dumped  out  together  well-nigh  instantaneously  at  the  oflBce  door 
of  Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.'s  Express.  Crowds  lined  the  street  awaiting 
the  distribution  of  letters,  papers,  packages  from  home  and  abroad 
— a  hungry  multitude  whose  souls  were  yearning  for  that  "tender 
touch  of  a  day  that  would  never  come  back "  to  them.  Yes,  all  is 
life  and  activity,  business,  gain,  avarice,  mingled  with  the  lusts  and 
damning  deeds  of  the  baser  passions.  Society  had  been  elevated  out- 
wardly, but  the  old  nature  still  remained.  The  canvas  tents  had  given 
place  to  the  gaudily-decked  saloon,  but  the  whisky  was  the  same,  and 
so  were  the  crowds  of  motley  men  who  poured  down  the  fiery  liquid — 
only  some  of  them  wore  better  clothes  than  formerly  and  some  others 
worse.  The  same  spirit  of  hell  characterized  their  movements ;  the 
revolver  hung  loosely  in  the  belt;  the  knife  was  always  handy;  the 
shotgun  not  far  off  in  case  of  an  emergency.  The  names  of  the 
saloons  were  a  little  more  refined  than  those  of  old,  and  a  little  more 
in  consonance  with  the  tastes  of  the  surroundings.  Instead  of  "  Warm 
Hole,"  "  Eoaring  Camp  "  and  "  Last  Chance,"  you  beheld  on  neatly- 
painted  signs —  really  an  adornment  —  the  names  and  titles  of  ''  Min- 
er's Eetreat,"  the  "Welcome"  "Home  of  the  Boys,"  "Saint  Elmo," 
etc.  But  the  same  element  congregated  nightly  and  the  same  fiery 
liquids  maddened  and  stupefied  the  brain  and  the  same  fierce  brawl 
and  murder  and  riot  were  now  to  be  seen,  and  heard  perhaps  not 
so  freqently  as  when  the  wind  whistled  through  the  door  cracks 
and  the  snow  filtered  through  the  crevices  of  the  tents  in  the  days  of 
the  first  winter  in  Washoe. 


CIO  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUXTAIXS. 

However,  according  to  a  late  writer,*  ail  this  was  changed  for  the 
better  in  Xevada.  She  tells  how  the  '*  best  society  "  gave  her  excellent 
drives  and  placed  their  fastest  teams  at  her  disposal,  and  so  they  drove 
over  to  Washoe  YaUey  to  see  the  palatial  residence  of  the  man  who 
was  created  a  millionaire  in  its  early  days  and  who  had  died  in  poverty 
but  a  few  months  before  her  visit,  and  was  buried  behind  the  grreat 
house  he  built  in  the  wild  adventurous  speculative  days  that  charac- 
terized the  earlier  years  of  the  battle-born  State.  With  true  womanly 
feeling,  she  is  giad  "  that  the  mills  are  mostly  idle ;  they  should 
not  with  their  clangor  have  ever  invaded  this  peaceful  spot.  They 
have  scared  the  fishes  from  the  waters  and  the  wild  fowl  from  the 
sedges.  Let  them  perish."  'Tis  true,  she  beheld  in  the  present  condi- 
tion of  Virginia  and  its  surroundings  an  emblem  of  the  unsettled  and 
unfinished  state  of  the  country — a  speck  of  civilization  and  grandeur 
dropped  upon  its  illimitable  waste  of  savagery.  Behind  it  was  the 
quarried  mountain  from  which  it  sprang,  and  before  it  the  beautiful 
lake  which  lay  like  a  silver  horseshoe  dropped  upon  fields  of  snow. 
In  the  glad  summer  time  this  valley  to  her  was  one  of  the  most 
beautiful,  surrounded  by  the  taller  peaks  of  the  Sierras.  Its  meadows 
were  emerald  green ;  its  acres  of  wheat  and  barley  swayed  in  the 
gentle  breeze,  and  yonder,  where  the  long  bridge  spanned  the  dark 
tule-bed,  bloom  thousands  of  yellow  water  lilies.  She  tells  of  balls  and 
levees  at  Carson,  of  the  drive  homeward  by  Empire  and  Dayton,  of 
the  penitentiary  with  the  great  granite  quarry  behind  it,  and  the 
Warm  Springs  beside  it,  of  the  great  stone  baths  where  you  can 
drown  all  your  sorrows  if  you  choose  by  casting  yourself  beneath  their 
waters,  of  the  approach  to  Empire  marked  by  the  great  brick  house 
and  dilapidated  reduction  works  of  the  Mexican  Company,  and  of  the 
fortunes  that  lie  buried  beneath  the  ruins  of  its  buildings  and 
machinery,  a  monument  of  the  speculative  period ;  of  the  fine  mill  of 
the  Yellow  Jacket  Company,  its  busy  surroundings  and  the  dull  thud 
of  its  stamps  long  after  its  red  walls  have  faded  from  sight ;  of  the  long 
drive  across  the  flats  and  over  the  Chalk  hill,  and  of  the  busy  miUs  and 
heavily-laden  teams  bearing  the  wealth  of  the  mountains  to  the 
crushing  mills ;  of  Dayton's  red  brick  court  house  and  the  judge's  home, 
made  famous  by  the  innumerable  divorces  granted  to  ladies  who  ignore 
their  first  loves,  formed  in  the  immaturity  of  youth,  to  aspire  to  wealth 

*  Louise  M.  Palmer. 


r 


ECHOES  FKOM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  611 

and  position  in  the  hands  not  hearts  of  another ;  of  the  drive  from 
Dayton  through  Silver  City  and  Gold  Hill  to  Virginia  ;  of  the  scenes 
of  activity  that  meet  the  vie\v — the  clangor  of  mills,  forges,  found- 
ries and  work  shops,  mingled  with  the  red-hot  oaths  of  exasperated 
teamsters  whose  mules  had  foundered  on  the  road,  and  the  innumerable 
saloons  and  drinking  shops  that  round  out  the  town  of  Silver  City  ;  of 
the  miles  of  mills  and  sluices  that  convey  her  thence  to  Gold  Hill,  with 
its  gorges,  houses,  dumps  of  ore,  yelling  teamsters  and  burning  oaths ; 
of  the  glory  of  Mount  Davidson,  beneath  whose  crown  and  crest  lies 
the  city  of  Yirginia;  of  the  yawning  galleries  of  the  Savage,  the 
Chollar,  the  Potosi,  the  Gould  &  Curry,  the  Ophir,  and  the  host  of 
other  mines  that  warn  her  of  land  caves  and  the  tremor  of  a  sudden 
convulsion  that  cry  to  them  to  flee  the  wrath  to  come ;  of  the  ladies' 
midday  lunch  parties  of  chickens,  cream,  ices  and  champagne,  the  five 
different  cooks  she  had  the  last  year,  the  escorts  of  unmarried  men  Avith 
the  married  ladies  whose  husbands  are  playing  at  billiards  or  some 
other  game  of  ball  or  of  chance  with  the  fickle  goddess ;  of  the  rules 
and  fashions  of  society  in  general  and  the  approval  in  particular  of  the 
course  determined  upon  by  Mrs.  R.  to  divorce  herself  from  her  husband 
because  he  has  lost  a  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  his  last  speculation. 

Such  is  the  evidence  the  fair  writer  presents  to  convince  the  world 
that  times  have  changed  in  Yirginia  City  and  Nevada  "  since  Ross 
Browne  wrote  and  Mark  Twain  taxed  his  brain  for  horrible  and  ficti- 
tious locals."  But  while  she  tells  of  church  festivals  gotten  up 
especially  for  the  ladies,  evening  parties,  dances,  club  and  public  balls, 
interspersed  with  card  and  dinner  parties,  very  gay  and  fashionable, 
where  they  exhibit  their  precious  diamonds  and  ancient  laces  to  the  eyes 
of  rival  mine  and  mill  men's  wives  and  daughters  with  as  much  eager- 
ness as  displayed  by  the  New  York  and  Parisian  belles,  she  admits 
that  what  Ross  Browne  said  of  the  hotels  still  remains  true,  and  that 
there  are  still  as  many  saloons.  "  But  a  man  for  breakfast "  is  not  now 
to  be  had  every  day,  and  ladies  of  the  demi  monde  no  longer  expect  to 
eat  the  dinners  and  grace  the  parties  of  the  haut  ton.  My  honest 
readers,  has  she  really  proved  the  difference  she  claims  ? 

The  Washoe  excitement  of  1860-'61-'62  was  repeated  in  the  Reese 
River  country  in  1863.  In  the  early  spring  of  the  previous  year  a  man^ 
hunting  his  stray  ponies  in  the  caiions  of  the  Toyahe  Range  of  the 
mountains,  struck  a  streak  of  greenish  quartz,  closely  resembling  that 


612  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY    liOUNTAIXS. 

in  Gold  Hill.  It  proved  to  be  a  rich  deposit  of  silver  ore.  On  the  10th 
of  July  following  the  first  miners'  meeting  was  held  in  that  country 
and  the  mininor  district  of  Reese  River  established.  The  orio^inal 
discovery  was  named  "  Pony  Ledge,"  in  honor  of  the  Pony  Express. 
The  excitement  spread,  emigration  poured  in,  and  the  town  of  Austin 
was  founded.  On  the  19th  of  December  the  "  Oregon  Ledge "  was 
discovered  and  located,  and  ten  days  later  the  "  Xorth  Star "  and 
"  Southern  Light."  They  were  the  first  true  discoveries  of  rich  silver 
ore  in  that  country.  Six  miles  farther  south  the  famous  "Comet "  was 
located,  famous  for  its  promise  and  the  barren  rock  it  proved  to  be. 
The  yield  of  the  Oregon  Ledge  was  so  extraordinary,  from  the 
assay  at  Virginia  City,  of  specimens  sent  there  for  that  purpose, 
yielding  several  thousands  of  dollars  to  the  ton,  that  the  wildest 
excitement  resulted.  It  was  the  richest  discovery  yet  made  in  all  the 
mineral  districts  of  Xevada.  In  January,  1S63,  the  great  rush  began. 
The  same  scenes  were  inaugurated  by  the  same  class  of  men  who, 
two  years  before,  had  made  TVashoe  so  famous.  Merchants,  doctors, 
lawyers,  brokers,  mule-drivers,  all  were  off  for  the  glittering  fields  of 
the  new  land  of  silver.  Kot  a  house  was  there,  no  food  and  shelter 
for  the  multitude — but  what  of  that?  The  silver  was  there  in  vast 
abundance,  and  hunger  and  cold  and  sore  privations  were  but  a  small 
recompense  for  that  wealth  which  would  enable  its  possessor  to  live 
the  remainder  of  his  days  in  ease  at  the  "  bay,"  or  in  the  early  bom© 
of  his  childhood.  Five  thousand  people  gathered  about  Austin  in  the 
spring  and  summer  of  1863.  Tents  lined  the  hillsides.  Freight  trains 
laden  with  lumber,  food,  raiment  and  liquors  blocked  the  roads.  On  a 
trip  to  California  in  September,  of  that  year,  one  man*  counted  during 
a  part  of  the  journey  274:  freight  trains,  carrying  freights  at  20 
cents  per  pound,  nineteen  passenger  wagons,  three  pack-trains,  sixty- 
nine  horsemen  and  thirtv-one  footmen  between  Austin  and  Yirorinia 
City.  Another  counted  400  teams  of  all  descriptions  in  a  stage  ride 
between  the  same  places.  At  the  same  time  emigration  poured  in 
from  Salt  Lake  City  and  other  eastern  points  in  almost  as  great 
proportion.  The  road  both  ways  was  crowded  with  people  in  wagons, 
stages,  carriages  and  carts,  on  horseback,  muleback,  donkeyback,  with 
or  without  saddles,  with  hand-carts,  wheel-barrows,  on  foot  with  pack 
on  their  backs,  and  in  every  other  conceivable  mode  of  conveyance,  all 

•  5iL  J.  FarrelJ,  State  senator. 


ECHOES    FROM    TIIK     ROCKY     MOUNTAINS.  613 

rushing  madly  to  Reese  River,  tlie  new  silver  land  of  promise.  Not 
only  food  but  water  was  scarce,  and  the  dust-begrimed  traveler  on 
reaching  a  sage-bush  tent  or  a  wooden  shanty  soon  found  that  water, 
as  a  commodity,  was  almost  as  dear  as  whisky.  One  enterprising  firm 
retailed  it  in  carts,  clearing  $1,200  per  week  thereby.  An  Austin  bath 
was  described  to  be  "two  inches  of  cold  water  in  a  big  tub,  a  piece  of 
brown  soap,  a  napkin  and  a  dollar  and  a  half."  A  w^hole  section  was 
laid  off  into  budding  lots,  streets,  blocks,  mining  claims  and  water 
rights.  City  lots  sold  all  the  way  from  $100  to  $8,000,  according  to 
location.  Building  operations  were  carried  on  with  tremendous 
energy,  and  366  houses,  in  addition  to  innumerable  tents  and  shanties, 
were  errected  in  the  summer  of  1863. 

Many  parties  from  California  brought  their  houses  with  them  in 
sections  ready  framed  to  erect  on  arrival  at  Austin.  The  whole  com- 
munity was  kept  continually  in  a  state  of  feverish  excitement  by  new 
mimng  discoveries  made  almost  daily.  New  districts  were  organized, 
new  towns  laid  out,  and  thousands  who  had  rushed  rapidly  to  Austin 
departed  as  hastily  for  the  new  fields.  Still  the  capital  city  of  the 
Reese  River  district  contained  a  population  of  10,000.  Everything 
appeared  prosperous.  Money  was  abundant  and  twenty -dollar  gold 
pieces  as  numerous  as  "  feet "  on  the  mines,  but  also  as  valueless  for 
trading  purposes  as  nobody  could  change  them.  There  was  no  small 
change  in  the  district.  Provisions,  however,  were  as  correspondingly 
high.  Flour  sold  at  50  cents  a  pound  by  the  hundred  weight  and 
every  other  species  of  goods  was  disposed  of  at  proportionate  prices. 
Every  avocation  of  trade  and  industry  was  filled  and  all  the  professions 
were  represented.  Saloons,  drinking-shops,  gambling  dens,  hurdy- 
gurdy's  and  houses  de  joie  were  as  numerous  as  the  demands  of  the 
rougher  and  wilder  portion  of  its  population. 

Lines  of  stages  were  likewise  numerous  and  endeavored  to  meet 
the  wants  of  the  community.  They  ran  regular,  almost  daily  to 
Watertown,  Canyon  City,  Big  Creek,  Washington,  lone,  Yandleville, 
Yankee  Blade,  Butler  Cit}^,  Geneva,  Coral  City,  Jacobsville,  Lander 
City,  Pizarro,  Clinton,  Centreville,  Augusta,  Bolivar,  Unionville,  Star 
City,  and  to  every  mining  camp  w^hose  necessities  demanded  communi- 
cation with  the  larger  cities.  During  that  period  the  scene  was  ever 
busy,  varied  at  times  with  other  delights  than  those  of  labor.  Pack* 
trains  were  constantly  arriving  from  Utah   and  California,  and   once 


6U 


ttllOES    FiJOM    THE    KOCKY    MOLNTAIXS. 


"  an  air  of  oriental  magnificence  was  imparted  to  the  scene  by  the 
advent  of  a  lon^r  train  of  cameJs  loaded  to  an  astonishino:  extent." 
The  usual  train  of  evil  followed  such  busy  scenes  of  labor.  Vices 
predominated  among  a  certain  class  and  murders  were  frequent.  Once 
a  duel  was  fought.  The  names  of  the  participants  ought  to  have  been 
preserved  as  a  memorial  of  one  day's  fair  play,  or  shooting,  or  at  least 


CAMEL  TRAIN  BETWEEN  AUSTIN  AND  VIRGINIA  CITY. 


an  equal  chance  for  life.  But  religious  influences  were  alike  at  work^ 
and  a  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  was  formed,  a  rare  thing 
among  the  heterogeneous  population  of  that  day  and  place,  and  the 
many  vices  indulged  in  upon  the  remote  borders  of  civilization.  Xev 
ertheless  there  were  to  be  found  young  men  who  were  brave  enough  to 
face  the  music,  and  to  array  themselves  on  the  side  of  Christian  and 
religious  training,  and  their  work  at  times  was  eflFective.  Let  me  tell  you 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIiTS.      /  616 

that  it  requires  much  more  courage  in  such  a  community  to  organize 
and  uphold  an  institution  of  that  character  than  to  receive  the  fire  of 
a  desperado  without  flinching — and  all  honor  to  the  men  who  thus 
exhibited  their  nerve.  The  Reese  River  Reveille  was  established  pros- 
perously. A  half  dozen  stamp  mills  were  likewise  erected  that  year 
and  the  following  spring.  From  ten  to  twenty  mining  organiza- 
tions were  incorporated  daily,  a  vast  postal  and  express  business 
inaugurated  "and  more  than  fifteen  hundred  offices  were  opened  in 
Sun  Francisco  for  the  sale  of  the  hundreds  of  millions  of  stock  of 
the  thousands  of  Reese  River  mining  companies."  United  States  post 
offices  were  established,  but  "Wells,  Fargo  &  Co.  continued  as  before 
to  be  the  reliable  agents  for  transmission  of  mail  as  well  as  bullion  and 
express  matter. 

Lander  Hill,  Central  Hill,  and  Mount  Prometheus  were  spotted  all 
over  with  "  claims."  Every  man  who  owned  a  pick  and  could  dig  a 
hole  in  the  ground  instantly  made  a  location,  called  it  the  "  Mammoth  " 
or  "  Midas  "  ledge  and  offered  it  for  sale  at  stupendous  figures.  It  was 
the  grand  period  of  speculation  when  everybody  wanted  to  sell  out 
everything  at  enormous  rates ;  when  lodgings  in  a  sheep  corral  had  to 
be  paid  for  at  50  cents  per  night  in  advance,  and  when  it  was  a 
luxury  to  sit  all  night  by  a  stove  or  lean  against  a  post  without  charge 
for  your  slumbers.  One  man  digging  a  post  hole  struck  something 
blue.  It  seems  to  me  that  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  strike  the  "  blues  " 
all  the  time  in  such  a  land,  but  this  man  declared  it  to  be  a  rich 
mineral  ledge,  and  its  fame  went  out  far  and  wide  that  the  ore  of  the 
wonderful  "  Post  Hole  Ledge"  contained  the  best  character  of  chloride 
of  silver.  He  staked  off  the  ledge  in  accordance  with  the  mining  law, 
putting  down  the  names  of  numerous  friends  who  reconveyed  to  him, 
and  was  immediately  offered  $60,000  for  his  mine.  Much  to  the  sur. 
prise  of  every  one,  who  supposed  he  had  a  million  in  sight,  he  accepted 
the  offer,  pocketed  the  coin  and  "  lit  out "  from  the  country.  Every- 
body called  him  a  blasted  fool  until  the  assay  was  made,  which  revealed 
the  fact  that  the  ore  contained  chloride  of  lead  instead  of  silver.  He 
grew  immensely  in  the  estimation  of  the  public.  The  purchasers  took 
him  for  a  countryman  and  found  him  the  shrewdest  "  verdant "  they 
had  ever  struck. 

As  already  stated,  during  the  year  quite  a  number  of  five  and  ten 
stamp  mills  were  erected,  attended  with  great  labor  and  expense.     It 


616  ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAIIJS. 

was  exceedingl}'  diffictilt  to  obtain  the  proper  kind  of  timber  to  con- 
struct all  the  mills.  Lumber  sold  from  $250  to  $500  per  1,000  feet. 
Ever}'  foot  of  lumber  brought  from  Sacramento  cost  18  cents  to  bring 
it.  It  was  a  most  laborious  task  to  transport  the  heavy  mill  machinery 
across  the  mountains,  and  after  the  mills  were  erected  and  the 
machinery  in  motion,  and  the  crushing  and  amalgamation  began  in 
earnest  it  was  found  that  the  results  did  not  equal  the  expectation. 
Finally  the  "  roasting  process  "  was  adopted,  with  much  greater  success. 
Furnaces  were  erected  and  placed  in  successful  operation.  The 
yield  was  fair,  and  each  ton  of  mineral  ore  produced  from  $150  to 
$2,000.  The  first-class  chlorids  averaged  from  $300  to  $500;  the 
second-class  from  $150  to  $300;  and  the  third-class  from  $100  to  $150; 
but  they  were  not  worked  while  there  was  an  abundance  of  superior 
ores.  The  bare  cost  of  working  the  ores  in  those  days  was  $S0  per 
ton.  During  the  year  1861:  about  $2,000,000  were  invested  in  mines, 
mills,  and  working  the  ore.  The  total  amount  of  bullion  shipped  to 
San  Francisco  in  1863  was  $50,000,  the  amount  shipped  during  the 
next  year  was  $600,000.  The  following  year  matters  began  to  decline. 
In  fact  before  the  close  of  1864  a  panic  seized  upon  the  stocks  of  Keese 
River,  and  the  wild  speculations  of  the  previous  year  became  apparent. 
Very  little  work  had  been  done  on  the  ledges,  and  some  of  those  whose 
shafts  had  been  sunk  to  a  depth  of  seventy  or  eighty  feet  were  found 
to  contain  barren  rock,  and  the  impression  grew  that  the  most  promis- 
ing ledges  were  not  permanent.  A  state  of  great  depression  followed. 
The  supplies  from  San  Francisco  ceased.  Stockholders  would  not  pay 
their  assessments,  and  work  on  the  ledges  almost  entirely  ceased. 
And  yet  ore  was  taken  from  a  mine  on  Lander  Hill,  which  yielded  an 
assay  of  $7,000  to  the  ton,  and  from  another  of  $10,000  per  ton- 
Eastern  capital  took  the  place  of  that  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  many 
Kew  Yorkers  became  interested  in  the  development  of  the  country. 
The  miners  who  had  held  on  to  their  claims  during  all  the  dark  days 
of  depression  were  compelled  finally  to  seek  the  aid  of  capital  and 
flooded  the  Xew  York  market  with  their  ledges.  Eastern  capital 
erected  the  large  miUs  on  the  "  Midas,*'  ''  Keystone,"  "  Yankee  Blade," 
"  Confidence,"  and  the  Parrott  Mill  on  Big  Creek,  nine  miles  south  of 
Austin,  each  of  which  cost  over  $100,000.  The  trouble  with  the 
Austin  mines,  and  that  which  ultimately  proved  its  ruin,  was  the  high 
cost  of  reducing  the  ores.    The  Washoe  mills  made  a  fair  profit  on 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS.  617 

ores  ranging  from  $20  to  $100  per  ton,  while  at  Austin  none  but  those 
of  a  superior  quality  could  be  worked  at  a  profit.  All  the  Reese  River 
ores  have  first  to  be  roasted  before  amalgamation,  which  adds  from 
$80  to  $100  per  ton  to  the  cost. 

Austin  was  the  Kevada  City  whence  started  the  wonderful  sack 
of  flour  which  realized  so  many  thousands  of  dollars  in  aid  of  the 
Sanitary  Commission.  It  originated  from  the  payment  of  a  bet  made 
by  R.  C.  Gridley,  democrat,  with  Dr.  II.  S.  Herrick,  republican,  both 
well-known  citizens  of  Austin.  The  wager  was  made  upon  the  local 
election  of  that  place  for  mayor,  I  think,  and  resulted  in  Gridley 
carrying  upon  his  shoulder  a  sack  of  flour  from  Upper  Austin  to 
Clifton,  a  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half.  A  vast  concourse  of  people 
assembled  to  witness  the  novel  ceremony.  The  best  of  good  nature 
prevailed.  A  great  procession  was  formed,  consisting  of  the  newly 
elected  city  officers,  followed  by  musicians  on  horseback,  who  alter- 
nateh'"  played  a  national  air  and  "  Dixie."  Next  came  Gridley  with 
a  sack  of  flour,  attended  by  two  standard  bearers,  carrying  aloft  the 
Stars  and  Stripes.  The  people  followed,  filled  with  hilarity,  lively 
sonofs  and  shouts  of  encourao-ement  to  the  bearer  of  the  sack  of  flour. 
On  arriving  at  Clifton  it  was  suggested  that  the  sack  of  flour  be  sold 
at  auction  to  the  highest  bidder,  and  the  sum  realized  be  presented  to 
the  Sanitary  Commission  for  the  benefit  of  the  Union  soldiers  in  the 
field.  The  proposition  was  adopted  and  the  flour  disposed  of  accord- 
ingly, but  the  sum  was  so  small  that  the  purchaser  donated  the  sack 
to  be  resold  on  arriving  at  Austin.  Everybody  attended  the  auction, 
and  the  bidding  was  lively.  Everybody  bid,  democrats,  republicans, 
men  of  all  parties,  there  were  no  Greenbackers  or  Mugwumps  in  those 
days,  but  everybody  else  bid  for  the  sack  of  flour,  and  it  was  finally 
knocked  down  to  a  Reese  River  capitalist  at  $3,000.  The  sack  was 
again  donated,  and  on  the  following  day  resold  for  $1,Y00.  The 
patriotism  of  Gridley  was  aroused,  and  he  started  on  a  tour  to  San 
Francisco,  selling  the  sack  at  every  town  on  the  way.  At  Virginia 
City  it  brought  $8,000;  at  Sacramento,  $10,000,  and  at  San  Francisco, 
$15,000.  Tremendous  excitement  followed  the  sack  everywhere. 
Nearly  $40,000  was  obtained  in  California,  and  Gridley  started  for  the 
East,  selling  the  sack  of  flour  at  all  the  larger  cities  on  the  way  until 
he  reached  the  Atlantic  coast.  The  flnal  result  attained  was  $100,000, 
which  he  paid  over  to  the  agents  of  the  Sanitary  Committee,  with 
great  eclat  in  the  city  of  New  York. 


618  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAIITS. 

It  was  a  grand  speculation  in  aid  of  a  grander  cause  ameliorating 
the  sufferings  of  the  sick  and  wounded  soldiers  in  the  hospitals  and 
softening  the  asperities  of  camp  life  of  those  in  the  wintry  fields.  But 
Gridley  did  not  suffer  bj  the  enterprises  thus  exhibited.  Xot  alone 
did  fame  become  his,  but  fortune  likewise.  Enlisting  the  favor  and 
good  will  of  certain  financiers  in  Xew  York,  he  obtained  sufficient 
capital  to  return  to  Austin  and  start  a  bank,  which  proved,  ultimately, 
to  be  the  foundation  of  the  great  banking  astablishment  known  as  the 
First  National  Bank  of  Nevada,  one  of  the  most  solid  institutions  on 
the  Pacific  coast. 

Thus  doth  reward  follow  good  deeds — sometimes.  Perhaps  some 
other  man  of  moderate  means  and  good  luck  may  take  advantage  of 
the  next  great  war  to  make  a  bet  of  a  sack  of  flour  on  the  result  of  a 
municipal  election,  manage  the  business  so  as  to  lose  it,  seU  the  sack  for 
some  sanitar\'  purpose,  travel  from  city  to  city  throughout  the  land, 
reaping  a  golden  harvest  for  the  cause,  enjoy  himself  hugely  and 
become  the  most  conspicuous  if  not  a  noted  man  of  his  times; 
impress  his  enterprise  and  good  business  quahties  upon  the  finan- 
ciers who  will  stand  ever  ready  to  join  him  in  a  business  venture  4,000 
miles  away,  and  finally  start  a  bank  which  will  continue  to  pour  end- 
less wealth  into  his  lap.     Get  up  a  war  and  try  it. 

Time  and  space  forbid  any  further  description  of  "Washoe  and 
Beese  River  scenes  of  other  days.  While  we  have  noted  many  of  the 
ruder  and  more  exciting  events  of  these  early  times,  and  depicted  the 
results  upon  security  of  unlicensed  law,  the  rule  of  riot  and  the  thirst 
for  gain,  we  have  all  the  whUe  been  standing  face  to  face  with  nature's 
mightiest  wonders.  "We  have  trodden  the  ground  where  for  silent  ages 
Titanic  forces  were  at  work  guided  by  the  invisible  hand  of  mysterious 
divine  law  to  produce  that  which  the  art,  genius  and  toil  of  man  hath 
brought  to  view.  "We  depart  from  these  scenes  with  a  broader  view 
of  man's  hopeful,  untiring  nature,  and  a  grand  appreciation  of  his 
labors,  with  the  conviction  resting  deep  down  in  our  heart  that  the 
greater  share  of  our  admiration  should  be  bestowed  upon  that  brave 
and  steadfast  race  who  have  grappled  with  the  mountains,  and  on  their 
overthrow  surmounted  barrers  and  conquered  those  adverse  forces  of 
nature  before  which  a  Hannibal  or  Caesar  would  have  stood  appalled 
and  irresolute.    Farewell,  "Washoe,  good  bye  Reese  River. 


CHAPTEB    XLIII. 

MINES  AND  MINING  ON  THE  PACIFIC  AND  IN  THE  TERRITOEIES  -  LAW^S  RELAT- 
ING TO  MINING  — CHARACTER  OF  MINERS  — THE  VAST  MINERAL  PRODUC- 
TIONS—QUICKSILVER MINING  IN  CALIFORNIA. 

One  of  the  chief  sources  of  national  wealth,  as  well  as  national 
progress  in  the  arts  and  ways  of  civilization,  is  that  of  mining.  It  is 
the  means  of  supply  for  the  mineral  or  inorganic  world.  Its  products 
in  general  are  imperishable,  but  its  sources  are  not  perpetual,  and  once 
exhausted  can  not  be  renewed.  These  sources  are  not  equally  distrib- 
uted among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  and  those  who  possess  and  util- 
ize them  obtain  great  industrial  and  commercial  advantages.  The  title 
to  all  mineral  deposits  has  ever  rested  in  the  general  government,  sepa- 
rate and  distinct  from  the  ownership  of  grazing  or  agricultural  lands. 
This  legal  principle  is  of  ancient  origin.  At  an  early  period  the  sover- 
eign's peculiar  right  to  the  metallic  treasures  of  the  earth  was  based 
upon  divine  ordinance.  Compliance  with  the  forms  of  certain  modern, 
statutory  laws  invest  the  individual  with  title  of  possession.  As  a 
medium  of  exchange  and  measure  of  values  the  precious  metals  are 
pre-eminent  through  all  ages.  The  Phoenicians,  the  Egyptian  kings, 
the  ancient  Greeks  and  Romans  and  their  tributary  tribes,  the  Etrus- 
cans, Salassians,  the  tribes  of  Gaul,  the  Britons  and  Carthaginians,  all 
engaged  industriously  in  mining  the  various  minerals  and  metals. 
Through  the  first  two  Punic  Wars  Rome  secured  the  mines  of  Sicily, 
Sardinia  and  Spain.  Those  of  Asia  Minor,  Greece,  Macedonia,  Asia, 
Egypt,  Gaul  and  Britain  were  added  by  successive  conquests,  and 
became  the  property  of  the  State.  Nevertheless  the  Roman  law 
invested  the  mineral  right  in  the  owner  of  the  soil  when  his  title  was 
absolute  and  complete.  The  condition  was  similar  to  that  in  the 
United  States  where,  according  to  the  English  common  law,  the  dual 
title  exists;  where  the  Government  is  possessed  of  all  mineral  rights 
of  the  public  domain  while  the  private  owners  of  land  in  any  State  or 
Territory  own  its  mineral  deposits  likewise- 

The  ancient  widespread  democratic  principle  of  mining  freedom, 
while  always  an  issue  of  conflict  between  the  subject  and  sovereign^ 

619 


620  ECHOES    FROM    THE    liOCKT    MOUNTAINS. 

first  found  absolute  expression  in  the  thirteenth  century  among  the 
Germans,  and  which  secured  to  every  citizen  in  the  community  where 
the  mineral  existed  the  right  to  mine  as  thp  first  discoverer  of  the 
precious  deposit  wherever  he  could  without  encroaching  upon  the  min- 
ing rights  previously  conferred  upon  others.  In  the  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth  centuries  an  elaborate  system  of  mining  jurisprudence  grew 
up  in  Germany,  based  in  the  main  upon  the  foregoing  principles.  It 
embraced  the  publication  of  the  notice  of  discovery ;  the  issue  of  a 
l^ermit;  the  survey,  location  and  regular  lease  of  the  mining  ground 
after  the  deposit  had  been  uncovered  and  exposed  to  view ;  the  obliga- 
tion to  prosecute  the  work  continuously,  unless  prevented  by  natural 
causes;  the  payment  of  royalty  and  the  furnishing  of  mine  timbers  by 
the  crown  forester.  These  mining  leases  covered  a  certain  area  of  the 
surface  and  a  space  below,  either  bounded  by  vertical  planes  or  by 
surfaces  parallel  with  the  dip  of  the  vein,  and  was  permitted  to  follow 
the  vein  downward  indefinitely.  Here  we  find  the  first  legal  dawn 
of  the  principles  now  operating  in  the  present  centur}-.  Time  has 
enlarged  and  made  them  more  absolute.  Under  the  common  law,  as 
held  in  this  country,  the  mineral  right  of  whatever  character  originates 
in  the  ownership  of  the  soil,  although  it  may  be  alienated  and  separ 
rately  conveyed  by  the  act  of  the  owner,  who  must,  however,  grant 
also  the  right  to  enter  upon  his  land,  dig  and  transport  the  minerals 
thus  obtained.  Such  are  also  the  mining  laws  of  England,  and  those 
of  Australia  and  Canada  foUow  the  principles  save  as  modified  by  old 
grants  of  the  crown,  and  the  possessory  right  of  the  local  governments 
of  colonies  upon  large  areas  of  unoccupied  public  lands,  to  favor  their 
own  mining  laws. 

In  the  United  States  there  have  been  many  acts  with  regard  to 
the  regulation  of  mining  under  the  powers  granted  to  Congress  by  the 
constitution  to  dispose  of  the  public  lands.  A  system  of  leases  similar  to 
the  German  code  was  adopted  in  1807  with  the  lead  mines  of  the  Upper 
Mississippi,  but  it  was  its  first  and  last  experiment  in  such  a  direction, 
and  the  policy  was  changed  to  actual  sale  by  the  act  of  July  11th, 
1846,  authorizing  the  sale  of  the  reserved  mineral  lands  in  the  States 
of  Illinois  and  Arkansas  and  the  Territories  of  Wisconsin  and  Iowa  at 
an  increased  rate  of  $1.25  per  acre. 

The  act  of  March  3rd,  1847,  provided  for  public  or  private  sales 
at  $5  per  acre.     The  act  of  March  3rd,  1849,  organizing  the  interior 


I 


ECHOES    FKO.M    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAIXS.  621 

department,  transferred  to  it  all  powers  exercised  with  regard  to  the 
mines  of  the  United  States.  The  act  of  September  26th,  1850,  repealed 
the  acts  of  1847,  and  placed  the  mineral  lands  in  these  districts  on  the 
same  footing  as  other  public  lands  of  the  United  States  as  to  sale, 
private  entry  and  pre-emption,  and  the  courts  have  held  that  by  a 
United  States'  patent  the  mineral  right  was  conveyed  to  the  grantee, 
as  the  patent  gave  a  full  title  in  fee  according  to  the  common  law. 
The  discovery  of  gold  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  the  vast  and  sudden 
emigration  that  took  possession  of  the  country  in  advance  of  the  public 
surveys,  presented  usual  sales  of  the  public  lands,  and  for  a  period  of 
twenty  years  without  hindrance  on  the  part  of  the  national  authorities, 
the  miners  entered  upon  the  public  domain  and  extracted  and  exported 
its  precious  minerals  and  metals  without  asserting  any  claim  to  abso- 
lute ownership.  They  were  governed  entirely  by  the  local  mining  laws, 
enforced  by  a  miners'  court,  establishing  the  principle  of  recording 
claims  and  deciding  conflicts  of  title  in  favor  of  priority  of  record,  very 
similar  to  the  essential  principles  of  the  German  code.  The  miners 
were  virtually  trespassers  on  the  public  lands,  but  permitted  to  remain 
so  by  the  passive  attitude  of  the  Federal  government  until  finally,  by  a 
series  of  decisions  in  the  State  courts  and  in  the  United  States  Supreme 
Court  3  "Wallace,  97,  it  w^as  held  that  their  possessory  rights  as  against 
all  claimants  except  the  United  States  were  capable  of  being 
transferred,  taxed  and  valued  in  money.  Subsequently,  the  act  of 
Congress  of  July  27th,  1865,  provided  that  actions  for  the  recovery 
of  mining  claims  should  not  be  affected  by  the  paramount  title  of  the 
United  States,  but  should  be  judged  by  the  law  of  possession.  This 
principle  was  again  recognized  in  the  act  of  May  5th,  1866,  establishing 
the  boundaries  of  Nevada.  The  act  of  July  26th,  1866,  was  the  first 
general  law  relating  to  the  mines  on  the  public  domain.  It  fully 
opened  to  exploration  and  occupation  all  mineral  lands  surveyed  or 
unsurveyed  to  all  citizens  or  those  w^ho  had  declared  their  intention  of 
becoming  such,  subject  to  such  regulations  as  might  be  prescribed 
by  law  and  subject  also  to  the  local  customs  or  rules  of  miners 
in  the  several  mining  districts,  so  far  as  the  same  were  not  in 
conflict  with  the  laws  of  the  United  States.  It  likewise  provided  for 
the  issuing  of  a  patent  under  certain  rules  and  regulations  for  the  land 
containing  the  mineral  vein  of  deposit,  determining  the  price  at  S5  per 
acre.     It  also  established   the  number  of  feet  to  be  located  for  each 


622  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY     MOUNTAINS. 

individual  location  at  200,  with  an  additional  200  for  the  discoverer  of 
the  claim.  There  were  many  other  provisions  embraced  Avithin  the 
act.  The  act  or  July  9th,  1870,  provided  for  ^milar  proceedings  as  to 
placer  claims,  including  all  forms  or  deposits  except  veins  of  quartz 
or  other  rock  in  place,  not  to  exceed  160  acres  for  each  person  or 
association  at  the  maximum  price  of  ^2.50  per  acre.  This  act  proving 
defective  in  some  respects  was  corrected  by  the  subsequent  act  of  May 
10th,  1872,  which  is  incorporated  in  the  Revised  Statutes,  and  is  now 
the  paramount  law  of  the  land  relating  to  the  location  and  possession  of 
mining  claims.  These  laws  are  based  upon  the  theory  that  all  mineral 
deposits  except  coal  are  in  form  of  the  ideal  fissure  vein,  *.  e.,  a  body 
of  ore  possessing  a  certain  definite  thickness,  dipping  at  a  steep  angle» 
and  holding  its  course  downward.  Upon  this  assumption  the  discoverer, 
as  already  stated,  is  entitled  by  law  to  a  certain  number  of  feet  upon 
the  vein,  with  a  width  of  150  to  300  feet  on  each  side  of  the  outcrop, 
and  to  foUow  the  vein  wherever  it  may  lead  outside  of  his  side  lines. 
Were  all  mineral  deposits  of  this  type  the  right,  in  most  cases,  would 
prove  good;  but  the  ideal  fissure  vein  is  imaginary.  Mineral  deposits 
occur  in  every  form,  beds,  contact-veins,  masses  of  miscellaneous 
shapes,  segregations,  "  blow  outs,"  and,  in  fact,  in  every  form  but  the 
"true fissure  vein,"  and  the  law  does  not  cover  them.  In  man}'  cases 
the  line  of  outcrop  can  not  be  determined,  and  side  and  end  lines  have 
to  be  placed  at  random.  The  law,  therefore,  affords  infinite  oppor- 
tunity for  litigation,  and  it  is  well-nigh  an  axiom  among  miners  that 
"a  mining  title  is  a  title  to  a  lawsuit  with  a  mine  thrown  in."  Posses- 
sion, however,  is  more  than  "nine  points,"  and  a  shotgun  title  is 
frequently  the  best.  The  whole  trouble  arises  from  the  attempt  to 
convey  the  mineral  deposit  separate  from  the  land,  and  to  reverse  the 
proceedings  and  to  convey  the  land  with  all  mineral  deposits  would 
obviate  the  diflSculty  in  an  absolute  manner. 

The  history  of  the  gold  and  silver  discoveries  upon  the  Pacific 
Coast  and  in  the  Territories  is  of  marvelous  interest.  In  the  autumn 
of  1848,  two  months  subsequent  to  the  treaty  of  Gudalupe  Hidalgo, 
by  which  California  with  other  territory  was  ceeded  to  the  United 
States,  gold  was  found  at  Sutter's  Mill  on  the  Sacramento  River.  So 
great  were  the  discoveries  that  immediately  followed,  that  the  surface 
of  the  earth  seemed  covered  with  it,  and  with  each  spadeful  of  white 
gravel  the  yellow  ore  was  upturned.     The  soil  teemed  with  it,  washed 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  623 

down  from  the  auriferous  mountain,  and  the  beds  of  dried  rivers 
a]Dpeared  as  if  laden  with  the  precious  metal,  from  the  fine  grain  to 
tlie  ponderous  nugget.  The  news  of  this  marvelous  deposit  of  untold 
millions  aroused  the  cupidity  of  the  world,  and  the  mighty  gold  hunt 
began  from  the  four  quarters  of  the  earth.  From  Europe,  the  Atlantic 
States  of  America,  Mexico,  South  America  and  Oriental  Asia  they 
poured  by  thousands.  They  came  crowded  and  half  starved  in  foun- 
dering ships,  for  fifteen  thousand  miles,  round  wild  and  stormy  Cape 
Horn,  across  the  Isthmus  of  Darien,  struggling  through  the  fevered 
forests  of  the  tropics,  over  southern  mountain  ranges  damp  with  the 
dews  of  death,  and  most  laborious  and  dangerous  of  all,  they  crossed 
the  wilderness  of  the  American  Continent.  In  three  years  California's 
population  was  250,000  and  its  gold  exports  $60,000,000  per  annum.  It 
was  a  homogeneous  class  and  all  men  were  on  a  level  in  the  mines. 
Every  man  started  substantially  even  in  the  race — the  well- clothed  and 
the  ragged,  the  high-born  man  of  manners  and  the  untutored  plebeian, 
the  good  and  the  bad,  all  were  alike  in  terrific  struggle  for  gain.  Gold 
was  so  abundant  and  its  sources  apparently  so  inexhaustible,  that  the 
power  of  wealth  for  the  moment  was  lost,  and  social  and  financial 
inequalities  were  swept  away.  Each  man  worked  for  himself  with 
his  pan  and  pick,  and  the  chances  for  sudden  wealth  so  equal,  that  no 
menial  could  be  found.  The  richest  miner  in  the  camp  could  not  hire 
a  servant  to  wait  upon  him,  for  to-morrow  he  might  "strike  it  rich" 
and  himself  be  a  king  instead  of  a  servant.  They  preferred  to  dig 
their  own  claims.  The  veriest  "pilgrim"  or  "tender-foot"  was  as 
likely  to  uncover  the  richest  deposit  in  the  gulch  as  the  educated  pro- 
fessor of  geology,  and  the  richest  claims  of  to-day  might  suddenly 
cease  to  "pan  out"  on  the  morrow,  and  the  baffled  miner  beg  a  hand- 
ful of  dust  from  his  more  fortunate  neighbor,  to  make  another  start 
and  search  for  better  results.  No  one  was  ever  permitted  to  suffer,  or 
ask  in  vain  for  aid.  The  vast  treasures  of  the  Sierras  were  in  sight  and 
their  mighty  vaults  unemptied ;  and  besides,  the  successful  man  of  to-day 
might  need  the  same  help  from  his  neighbor  to-morrow.  Thus  genuine 
and  unconventional  hospitality  ruled  the  miner's  camp  from  the  Sacra- 
mento to  the  foothills  of  the  Sierras. 

Some  of  the  most  remarkable  gold  deposits  were  found  in  the 
gravel  beds  of  California,  which  mark  the  course  of  ancient  rivers  that 
long  since  ceased  to  flow.    They  mark  the  course  of  extinct  rivers  the 


624  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

same  as  bowlders  and  detritus  of  moraines  mark  the  course  of  extinct 
volcanoes.  They  offer  a  broad  field  for  geological  stucly  and  research, 
and  a  strange  and  peculiar  sight  strikes  the  beholder  as  he  gazes  "  far 
in  front  of  him  across  a  mile  of  gravel  bed,  where  busy  miners  and 
hj^draulic  appliances  are  at  work  out  of  view,  where  once  a  deep 
primeval  river,  a  mQe  broad,  flowed  in  slow  and  stately  course  through 
a  lonely  valley,  untenanted  by  any  tribe  of  man.  The  mammoth,  the 
great  elk,  and  the  most  ancient  Xorth  American  moose-deer  maj^  have 
stood  drinking  by  the  wide  stream  at  morn  and  even-tide,  and  with 
blank-gazing  eyes  may  have  beheld,  to  the  north,  the  far-off  mountains 
of  quartz  shooting  their  white  pinnacles  to  the  clouds,  thick-flaked  with 
gold,  a  dazzling,  glittering  mass  of  light,  visible  from  afar  as  the  slant- 
ing sunshine  gleamed  on  their  snow-white  sides  and  summits — whiter 
than  any  marble,  and  sparkling  with  gold.  !N"ext  these  glittering 
mountains  vanished,  sinking  in  ruin  into  the  bed  of  the  great  river. 
Then  the  sides  of  the  valley,  too,  sank  away,  and  the  great  river  itself 
disappeared,  seeking  lower  channels,  and  final h^  its  old  course  was  left 
on  high  ground,  where  only  tiny  rivulets  are  found,  far  too  small  to 
meet  the  wants  of  the  miners  now  toiling  in  the  dry  bed  of  the  van- 
ished river — a  mighty  Pactolus  of  primeval  times."  * 

As  already  related,  the  first  mines  discovered  in  California  were 
the  rich  placer  beds  on  the  Sacramento  river.  From  1849  to  1854  the 
yield  from  these  sources  was  unparalleled  in  the  history  of  mines,  reach- 
ing in  a  single  year,  1853,  sixty-five  millions  of  dollars.  After  the 
placers,  which  were  soon  worked  out,  came  the  discovery  of  quartz 
mines,  located  principally  in  the  Sierras,  whose  unceasing  outpour  of 
wealth  places  California  in  the  front  rank  of  bullion-producing  States. 
Placer  mining,  however,  is  still  prosecuted  to  a  very  great  extent  by 
the  h3'draulic  process,  but  the  days  of  "pan"  and  "rocker"  are  forever 
gone.  Placer  mines  are  classified  as  those  that  lie  near  the  surface  and 
those  covered  to  a  considerable  depth  b}"  barren  rock.  They  are  not 
confined  to  floats  or  bars  in  the  high-water  channel  of  streams  left  dry 
by  the  receding  of  the  waters,  but  are  found  on  benches,  bluffs  and 
hills.  The}^  have  also  been  found  and  worked  successfully  in  the  beds 
of  living  streams  by  turning  the  channel  of  the  river.  They  are  worked 
by  means  of  sluices,  tunnels,  dry  washings  and  the  hydraulic  process. 
The  most  ordinary  is  the  sluice,  a  long,  narrow  box,  open  at  the  top, 

*  Edinburgh  Review,  January  1879. 


ECHOES    FROil    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  625 

set  on  a  slight  incline,  with  cleats  across  the  bottom  at  short  spaces. 
The  rich  dirt  is  thrown  into  the  head  of  the  sluice,  through  which  runs 
a  stream  of  water  of  sufficient  volume,  with  the  incline,  to  wash  down 
the  sand  and  the  gravel.  Thus  borne  along,  the  particles  of  gold,  being 
heavier  than  the  dirt,  fall  to  the  bottom  and  are  caught  against  the 
cleats  or  "riffles,"  as  the  miners  term  them.  The  great  expense  attend- 
ing placer-mining  is  the  bringing  of  water  from  long  distances.  Fre- 
quently the  placers  are  so  valuable  that  companies  are  formed  and 
large  amounts  of  capital  invested  in  constructing  w^ooden  flumes  and 
ditches,  by  means  of  which  water  is  brought  from  great  distances, 
sometimes  for  twenty  miles  or  more.  In  1871  there  were  516  mining 
ditches  in  California  aggregating  4,800  miles  in  length,  an  average  of 
more  than  nine  miles  each.  Their  daily  supply  of  water  was  171,000 
miners'  inches,  meaning  20,000  gallons  each,  or  a  total  of  342,000,000 
gallons.  A  "miner's  inch  "  is  that  quantity  of  water  which  will  flow 
through  an  aperture  one  square  inch  in  area  under  a  given  pressure  or 
head,  and  about  forty  miner's  inches  are  approximately  equal  to  a  flow* 
age  of  one  cubic  foot  per  second.  This  may  appear  to  be  a  vast  quan- 
tity of  water  for  a  single  day's  consumption,  but  its  necessity  may  be 
readily  comprehended  when  it  is  considered  that  a  single  hydraulic  claim 
has  been  supplied  with  3,000  miner's  inches  or  60,000,000  gallons  per  day 
to  perfect  the  hydraulic  process  necessary  to  project  a  stream  of  water 
under  a  pressure  of  from  fifty  to  seventy  feet  head  against  the  face  of 
the  bed.  By  this  system  labor  is  performed  on  a  large  scale,  and  the 
work  of  many  days  by  the  primitive  pick  and  shovel  is  contracted  into 
that  of  a  few  hours.  Although  requiring  in  the  beginning  a  large  out- 
lay of  money,  many  placer  beds  are  made  to  yield  remuneratively  that 
otherwise  would  be  worthless. 

To  comprehend  the  vast  amount  of  mineral  wealth  extracted  from 
the  soil  and  mountains  of  California,  it  may  be  stated  that  according 
to  the  authority  of  Hittell  the  estimate  of  the  same  from  the  year  of 
the  discovery  to  1873  may  be  placed  at  $1,000,000,000.  According 
to  the  census  returns  the  total  production  of  gold,  silver  and  lead 
during  the  four  years  preceding  1880  in  that  State  amounted  to  over 
seventy-three  and  a  half  millions,  with  a  constant  average  of  between 
eighteen  and  nineteen  millions. 

As  stated,  gold  quariz  mining  is  likewise  carried  on  to  a  very 
profitable  extent.  From  not  more  than  a  dozen  quartz  mines  the  mag- 
nificent sum  of  $32,000,000  has  been  obtained,  chief  of  which  are  the 


626  ECHOES   FKOM   THE    ROCKY   MOUNTAINS. 

Princeton  mines  of  Mariposa,  and  Gold  Hill  and  Massachusetts  Hill,  of 
Xevada  county. 

Silver  has  also  been  found  in  California  Tn  small  paying  quantities 
x>n  the  coast  east  of  the  Sierras.  Copper  is  abundant  in  many  counties. 
Coal  is  found  at  some  points,  but  not  in  sufficient  quantities  to  meet 
the  demands  of  home  consumption.  Lead  is  also  abundant  in  most 
parts  of  the  State  in  the  form  of  galena. 

Frequently  valuable  deposits  of  gold  were  found  in  the  form  of 
nuggets,  sometimes  of  enormous  size.  A  recent  report  of  the  superin- 
tendent of  the  United  States  Mint  states  that  the  largest  nugget  ever 
found  in  Cahfomia  was  valued  at  $21,000.  This  has  been  disputed  by 
old  miners  and  residents  of  that  State,  who  declare  that  a  miner  named 
J.  J.  Finney,  nicknamed  "  Old  Virginia,"  discovered  a  piece  of  gold 
six  miles  from  Downieville,  in  Sierra  county,  on  the  21st  of  August, 
1857,  weighing  5,000  ounces,  which,  valued  at  $18  per  ounce,  reached 
the  sum  of  $90,000.  As  far  as  known  the  Finney  nugget  was  the 
largest  ever  discovered,  as  the  great  Australian  nugget  of  the  BaUarat 
gold  fields  was  valued  at  $60,000.  "When  the  noted  silver  discoveries 
were  first  made  at  "Washoe,  "  Old  Virginia,"  the  discoverer,  journeyed 
thither,  and  from  him  the  famous  city  of  Virginia  derived  its  name. 

Another  great  mining  industry  of  California  is  that  of  quicksil- 
ver. Before  the  discovery  of  the  mines  in  California  the  production 
of  that  mineral  was  mostly  confined  to  the  Almaden  and  Idria  mines 
of  Spain,  which  had  long  proved  the  main  source  of  the  world's  sup- 
ply. Although  rich  and  profitable  to  a  great  degree,  the  mines  of  Cali- 
fornia surpass  them  greatl}'  in  production  of  the  valuable  mineral,  and 
have  proven  a  "  mine  of  wealth  "  to  their  possessors.  They  are  named 
after  their  world-renowned  prototj^pes  of  Spain. 

The  Kew  Almaden  mines  of  California  are  situate  on  a  range  of 
hiUs  below  the  main  coast  range  in  the  valley  of  San  Jose.  The  rocks 
forming  the  subordinate  range  containing  the  quicksilver  are  chiefly 
magnesian  schists,  sometimes  calcareous  and  rarely  argillaceous.  The 
mine  is  opened  at  various  points  for  a  distance  of  five  miles  in  a  north- 
east direction,  but  there  are  no  well-defined  veins,  the  quartz  and  its 
associate  metals  occur  in  isolated  masses  segregated  from  the  general 
mass  of  metamorphib  rock  and  connected  obscurely  by  thread  veins  of 
the  same  mineral  Sometimes  these  narrow  threads  are  the  onl}'^  means 
of  rediscovering  the  metal,  lost  after  a  former  working,  and  it  often 


ECHOES    PROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  627 

happens  that  the  mine  for  a  time  appears  to  be  completely  exhausted  of 
ore ;  this,  however,  is  but  temporary.  "With  the  productions  of  the 
New  Almaden  and  Kew  Idria  mines,  California  ranks  foremost  among 
the  quicksilver-producing  countries  of  the  world.  Nevertheless  it  was 
not  until  1824  that  the  vast  wealth  concealed  in  these  mountains  was 
made  known,  and  it  was  not  until  1845  that  any  considerable  portion  of 
the  wealth  was  unfolded  from  its  rocky  beds,  at  which  time  the  mine 
was  opened,  by  authority  of  the  Mexican  Government.  After  Cali- 
fornia had  been  ceded  to  the  United  States,  much  litigation  ensued  as 
to  its  title,  and  finally  the  supreme  court  determined  its  ownership  to 
be  vested  in  its  present  occupants.  The  mines  are  located  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  1,700  feet  above  sea  level.  A  tunnel,  many  hundreds  of  feet 
long,  and  ten  feet  wide  and  high,  is  supported  by  massive  timbers  to  its 
full  length,  through  which  runs  a  railroad,  whose  cars  are  operated  by 
hand.  In  a  large  chamber  hewn  out  of  solid  rock  stands  the  engine, 
which  hoists  the  ore  from  the  various  levels  many  hundreds  of  feet 
below.  Far  down  on  the  lowest  level  a  blacksmith  shop  is  in  full  oper- 
ation with  all  the  busy  scenes  of  the  occupation,  and,  passing  through 
a  drift,  a  large  chamber  is  reached,  from  the  floor  of  which  is  a 
descent,  by  a  flight  of  stairs  cut  in  the  rock,  to  a  dismal  cavern  still 
farther  beneath,  where  the  sound  of  pick  and  shovel  and  the  sharp 
clink  of  the  borer's  hammer,  as  it  strikes  the  bar  with  which  he  is 
drilling  blasting  holes  in  the  surrounding  galleries,  falls  upon  the  ear. 
The  dim  light  of  a  candle  hung  on  the  wall  shines  in  the  Cimmerian 
darkness  and  furnishes  the  only  light  to  the  miner  plying  his  avoca- 
tion. These  mines  are  worked  on  shares,  and  the  system  of  co-opera- 
tion of  capital  and  labor  finds  a  complete  exemplification. 

Mining  tools  and  utensils  are  furnished  by  the  company  and  a 
small  amount  of  money  per  day,  until  a  deposit  is  found,  when  the 
miner  is  paid  an  agreed  price  for  the  quantity  of  ore  he  extracts,  the 
value  of  the  powder  and  steel  used  in  prospecting  operations  being 
first  deducted.  By  this  means  a  mutual  benefit  accrues  to  both  com- 
pany and  employes. 

The  smelting  process  employed  at  these  mines  resembles  the 
apparatus  at  Idria  in  Spain,  and  cast-iron  retorts  which  possess  aU 
the  peculiarities  suited  to  the  volatilizing  and  condensation  of  mercury 
are  in  use.  The  mercurial  vapors  are  condensed  in  a  chamber  which 
is  divided  into  sixteen  compartments,  partitioned  by  their  brick  walls, 


628  ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAUfS. 

pierced  with  holes  in  the  bottom  and  top  of  the  walls  alternately. 
Through  these  chambers  the  draft  carries  the  vapor  over  the  first  par- 
tition, under  the  next,  and  so  on  through  the  whole  series.  Most  of 
the  mercury  condenses  in  these  chambers  and  attaches  itself  to  the 
walls  like  dew  or  drops  into  the  gutters  at  the  bottom.  The  uncom- 
bined  vapors  find  their  wa\^  into  a  larger  chamber  filled  with  water,  in 
which  the  most  of  it  condenses  before  escaping,  through  the  long  slant- 
ing flumes,  to  the  atmosphere.  After  removal  from  the  walls,  the 
quicksilver  is  packed  into  iron  flasks,  one  of  the  few  metals  not  dissolved 
by  the  application  of  mercury.  Each  flask  contains  sixty-seven  and 
one-half  pounds,  worth  70  cents  per  pound.  From  a  ton  of  aver- 
age ore  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  of  mercury  are  obtained. 

The  New  Almaden  mines  have  produced  48,000  flasks  annually, 
employing  in  their  operations  more  than  one  thousand  men.  Their 
operations  of  late  years  have  been  in  a  decreased  ratio,  probably  fol- 
lowing the  example  of  the  Spanish  Government  in  reducing  the  aggre- 
gate yield  with  the  view  of  maintaining  the  market  value  of  mer- 
cury. 

The  New  Idria  mines  are  similar  in  every  respect  to  those  of  New 
Almaden,  and  a  description  of  the  labor  and  machinery  engaged  in 
extracting  the  valuable  ore  from  one  is  the  counterpart  of  the  other  in 
all  things  connected  with  their  development.  Both  are  rich  fields  of 
industry,  wherein  much  capital  and  labor  are  blended  and  from  which 
many  millions  of  dollars  have  been  obtained  as  a  reward  for  the  energy 
and  skill  displayed  in  unfolding  and  creating  this  new  industry  of  the 
State  of  California. 


CHAPTER  XLIY. 

MINES  AND  MINING,  CONTINUED- NEVADA,  THE  SILVER  LAND  OP  THE  WORLD— 
THE  WONDERFUL  PRODUCTIONS  OP  ITS  GREAT  MINES  — THE  BIG  BONANZA 
COMPANIES  — DISCOVERY  OP  GOLD  IN  COLORADO— THE  VAST  SILVER  AND 
LEAD  DEPOSITS-THE  RISE  OP  DENVER -LE AD VILLE— THE  MINERAL  WEALTH 
OP  DAKOTA— THE  BLACK  HILLS— GOLD  AND  SILVER  MINING  IN  WYOMING— 
BAD-LANDS— BONES  OF  GREAT  ANIMALS  —  MINING  IN  MONTANA  — ITS  VAST 
MINERAL  DEPOSITS -VIRGINIA  CITY— THE  MINERAL  RESOURCES  OP  IDAHO 
—WASHINGTON  TERRITORY -SILVER  MINING-ITS  MINERALS— OREGON— UTAH 
-ITS  MINERAL  WEALTH— THE  MINES  OF  NEW  MEXICO  AND  ARIZONA  — 
ANCIENT  RACES  — THE  PATHWAY  OF  CIVILIZATION  — THE  UPBUILDING  OP 
EMPIRE. 

Nevada  is  the  great  silver  land  of  the  world.  In  1859  the 
wandering  prospector,  rambling  beneath  the  shadows  of  Washoe, 
suddenly  beheld  silver  veins  cropping  out  of  lofty  Mount  Davidson, 
Still  greater  discoveries  were  made  in  rapid  succession;  princely 
fortunes  followed  the  working  of  the  mines,  and  the  excitement 
extended  to  all  the  great  money  centers  of  the  world.  All  the  wealth 
or  prosperity  which  !N"evada,  as  a  community,  possesses,  is  due 
entirely  to  its  vast  mineral  deposits.  Its  past  productions  have  been 
fabulous,  and  its  annual  productions,  according  to  the  census  reports, 
at  present  surpass  any  other  of  the  States  or  Territories.  Neverthe- 
less, these  values  fluctuate_from  year  to  year.  In  1874  its  productions 
of  precious  metals  amounted  to  nearly  thirty-five  and  a  half  millions ; 
in  1879  they  had  fallen  to  22,000,000,  and  in  1880  to  15,000,000. 
Nearly  all  of  this  vast  wealth  is  silver,  extracted  from  vein  deposits  of 
all  formations,  from  the  true  fissure  vein  to  segregations.  The  mine 
first  discovered  was  the  famous  Comstock  Lode,  which,  from  its 
wonderful  deposits,  gave  it  and  Nevada  a  world-wide  reputation.  Its 
width  at  the  surface  ranged  from  250  feet  to  1,100,  but  decreased 
irregularly  as  it  proceeded  downward,  at  times  narrowing  to  20  feet. 
Only  a  portion  of  the  great  mass  of  rock  is  metalliferous,  some  of  it 
being  entirely  barren,  and  others  of  a  very  low  grade  of  ore.  The 
rich  ore  is  contained  in  pockets  or  horses  (bonanzas)  dispersed  through 
its  veins.    In  1874  the  "  Big  Bonanza,"  the  richest  in  the  world,  was 


630 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 


discovered  on  this  ledge.  These  horses  or  bonanzas  are  great 
lenticular  masses,  sometimes  hundreds  of  feet  in  length  and  breadth, 
and  ranging  in  thickness  from  two  to  twoiundred  and  fifty  feet. 
Ten  of  these  pockets  or  bonanzas  have  been  thus  far  discovered  of 
the  follow  ins:  dimensions: 


Mexican  and  Ophir 

Gould  and  Curry 

Savage 

Hall  and  Notcfoss 

Chollar-Potosi 

Gold  Hill       ...;... 

Yellow  Jacket 

Kentuck        .      , 

Crown  Point  and  Belcher 

Consolidated  Virginia  and  California  (Big  Bonanza) 


LEKGTH  IN  BREJlI>TH  tX 

I    FEET.    j    FEET. 

600 

650 

600 

540 

500 

300 

520 

600 

580 

500 

1,040 

550 

340 

500 

300 

400 

600  1    600  1 

700 

600  1 

FEET. 


2  to     70 

3  to  100 
5  to  60 
3  to  40 
5  to    85 

10  to  100 
5  to  60 
2to  40 
5  to    60 

20  to  250 


The  average  yield  per  ton  from  the  last  has  been  $110.  The 
annual  yield  of  the  Comstock  lode  from  its  discovery  to  1876  is  as 
follows : 


I860 

$    100,000 

1867 

$  13,738,618 

1874 

$  23,051,496 

1861 

2,000,000 

1868 

8,479,769 

1875 

24,885.617 

1862 

6,000,000 

1869 

7,405,578 

1876 

37,000.000 

1863 

12,400,000 

1870 

8,254,272 

1864 

16,000,000 

1871 

10,644,704 

$234,074,309 

1865 

16,000,000 

1872 

13,159,093 

1866 

11,769,100 

1873 

23,216,062 

The  sum  disbursed  in  dividends  by  the  two  companies  owning  the 
Big  Bonanzas  up  to  the  close  of  1880  amounted  to  $74,170,000,  of 
which  the  California  company  disbursed  $31,510,000,  and  the  Consol- 
idated Vii^nia,  $42,660,000.  The  present  value  of  the  former  mine, 
as  estimated  by  the  price  of  its  stock,  is  $1,000,000,  and  the  latter 
$1,500,000.  The  proportionate  amount  of  gold  contained  in  the  ore 
ranges  from  thirty- three  to  seventy  per  cent. 

All  of  these  bonanzas  have  been  worked  out,  and  the  labor  now 
expended  is  in  search  of  new  pockets  at  stiU  greater  depths.  This 
labor  involves  still  greater  expense  as  the  depth  increases.  The  great 
distance  the  rock  has  to  be  hoisted,  the  large  accumulation  of  water 
and  the  intense  heat  to  be  endured  by  the  miners,  add  largely  to 
the  cost  of  the  labor.  The  temperture  at  the  lowest  level  attained 
rises  to  130**  Fahrenheit,  and  new  shifts  of  workmen  replace  the 
others  every  twenty  or  thirty  minutes,  otherwise  they  would  perish. 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUN'TAIN-S.  631 

Atpresent  none  of  these  mines  are  paying  dividends,  but  are  being 
worked  at  the  expense  of  the  stockholders  upon  whom  are  levied 
assessments  for  that  purpose. 

There  are  other  productive  mining  districts  in  the  State,  of  which 
the  Eureka  is  the  best  known  and  most  prolific.  This  company  has 
paid  sixty-one  dividends,  amounting  to  $4,500,000.  The  Tuscarora 
district  has  likewise  produced  large  amounts,  but  their  value  is  entirely 
dependent  upon  the  pockets  they  strike,  and  the  veins  are  of  the 
segregated  character,  and  not  true  fissure  veins. 

In  1863  discoveries  were  made  in  the  Reese  River  country  tha.t 
gave  rise  to  great  excitement,  which  is  elsewhere  described.  The 
"White  Pine  district  likewise  produced  for  a  while  great  results,  but  the 
veins  suddenly  ceased  to  yield  after  being  worked  a  few  years,  and  at 
present  but  a  few  mines  are  being  developed. 

The  great  need  of  Nevada  now  is  the  means  of  working  the  low 
grade  ores  at  a  profit.  Tens  of  thousands  of  tons  of  this  class  of  ore 
lie  all  over  the  State,  but  with  the  present  processes  they  can  not  be 
made  to  yield  a  profit. 

In  1880  $75,000,000  of  gold  and  silver  were  produced  in  the  min- 
eral-bearing States  and  Territories,  of  which  California,  Nevada  and 
Colorada  produced  $55,000,000. 

Another  mineral  production  of  Nevada  of  note,  and  which  under 
favorable  auspices  would  prove  a  rich  industry,  is  the  vast  salt  forma- 
tion in  many  parts  of  the  State.  On  the  Rio  Virgin,  Lincoln  county, 
there  exists  a  deposit  of  pure  rock  salt.  This  vein  is  exposed  for  two 
continuous  miles,  and  has  been  traced  for  nine  miles ;  it  is  half  a  mile 
wide  and  of  unknown  depth.  In  places  canons  have  been  cut  through 
it  more  than  fifty  feet  deep.  It  is  of  ancient  formation  and  covered 
in  places  with  basaltic  rock  and  volcanic  tufa,  showing  its  early  origin. 
It  is  so  tenacious  that  it  must  be  blasted  like  rock,  and  so  pure  and 
transparent  that  the  pages  of  a  book  may  be  read  through  blocks  a  foot 
thick! 

In  Churchill  county  at  Sand  Springs  there  is  another  deposit, 
fourteen  feet  deep,  entirely  free  from  any  foreign  substance,  which  has 
been  quarried  at  the  rate  of  five  tons  a  day  per  man.  Another  great 
salt  field  is  the  Humboldt,  six  by  fifteen  miles  in  area.  A  remarkable 
phenomenon  is  attached  to  the  great  salt  deposit.  When  the  summer 
heats  have  evaporated  the  surface-water,  pure  salt,  to  the  depth  of  four 


032  ECHOES    FROM    THE    BOCKY     MOUXTAINS. 

or  five  inches  may  be  scraped  oflp  and  used  as  a  commoditj  without 
further  cost.  Immediately  beneath  this  surface  deposit  is  a  stratum  of 
the  purest  rock  salt  of  unknown  depth.  Soda,  borax  and  other  valu- 
able minerals  likewise  exist  in  large  quantities  near  these  vast  salt 
deposits.  "WTiat  a  wonderful  industry  might  be  created  out  of  these 
mineral  deposits !  A  considerable  business  is  already  established  in 
gathering  borax  on  the  line  of  the  new  Carson  &  Colorado  Kailroad  ; 
but  if  the  capitalist  who  spends  his  time  roaming  around  looking  for 
some  safe  investment  at  five  per  cent,  for  his  money  would  become 
possessed  of  sufficient  courage  to  develop  these  mines  and  open  a  path- 
wa3"  to  the  meridian  lines  of  commerce,  what  a  splendid  return  he 
would  obtain  for  his  venture!  Run  your  railroads  to  remote  points, 
sink  your  shafts  and  tunnels  in  their  luminous  and  transparent  depths, 
and  in  a  very  little  whUe  \'Ou  will  command  the  salt  markets  of  the 
world. 

In  1858  gold  was  first  discovered  in  Colorado,  in  the  Rich  placers 
on  Cherry  Creek  and  other  streams  at  the  base  of  the  mountains.  The 
wonderful  tide  of  emigration  which  had  inundated  California  ten  years 
before  turned  to  the  new  El  Dorado.  The  mighty  crusade  wended  its 
way  over  mountains,  and  deserts  to  this  second  El  Dorado.  The 
ph\'sical  results  were  not  less  surprising  than  the  mineral.  In  a  night, 
almost,  Denver  sprang  from  a  stage  station  to  a  cit\%  and  a  stirring 
line  of  settlements  became  established  along  the  eastern  base  of  the 
mountains.  As  time  went  on  so  did  the  wave  of  humanity  that  swept 
over  the  mountain  barriers  and  cleaned  up  the  placers  of  South  Park, 
California,  and  other  gulches  in  the  valley  of  the  Arkansas.  Thev^ 
swept  be3'ond  the  Elk  and  the  San  Juan  mountains,  and  were  only 
halted  b\'^  the  inhospitable  deserts  and  the  tide  of  Indian  violence  that 
followed  the  incursions  of  the  white  man.  It  created  a  new  State, 
whose  assessed  value  of  property  in  1878,  according  to  the  census  of 
1880,  was  $43,072,648,  not  one-third  of  the  actual  value  of  its  varied 
wealth  and  industries.  The  path  of  empire  seemed  to  be  outlined  by 
the  lofty  peaks  that  overshadowed  the  cities  of  its  earlier  triumphs, 
and  with  the  finger  of  destiny  to  point  the  way  far  southward,  in 
whose  untrodden  fields  newer  and  grander  trophies  were  to  be 
obtained  by  the  arm  of  industry.  And  so  the  southward  march 
began.  In  1877  enormous  deposits  of  silver  and  lead  ore  were 
discoveretl  in  the  regions  surrounding  Leadville,  which  gave  a  stiU 


ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAIIfS.  633 

mightier  impetus  to  the  settlement  and  development  of  the  State. 
The  old  times  of  '49  in  California,  and  Washoe  and  Eeese  Eiver  in 
Nevada,  seemed  to  be  re-enacted  in  the  silver  land  of  Southern  Colo- 
rado. Within  three  years  the  State  gained  in  population  over  100,000. 
The  city  of  Leadville,  built  up  in  the  wilderness,  became  an  entrepot  of 
trade,  commerce,  industry  and  art.  Railroads  connect  it  with  the 
mines  and  with  all  parts  of  the  Union,  and  it  is  fast  becoming  a 
populous  city  of  affluence  and  refinement. 

Other  discoveries  of  value  have  been  made  all  over  the  State,  and 
more  than  thirty  thousand  men  have  been  mining,  trading  and  pros- 
pecting in  the  Elk  Mountains  region  since  1880.  The'total  production 
of  the  mines  about  Leadville  since  their  discovery  in  1878  has 
amounted  to  more  than  thirty  millions  of  dollars  in  gold,  silver  and 
lead,  and  not  one  of  these  mines  is  exhausted.  The  total  production 
of  gold  and  silver  in  the  ten  mineral-producing  counties  of  the  State 
for  the  year  1880  amounted  to  $21,821,500.  Besides  the  precious 
metals,  Colorado  possesses  large  deposits  of  iron,  copper,  lead  and 
coal.  * 

The  mineral  wealth  of  Dakota  is  centered  in  the  Black  Hills. 
For  many  years  there  was  a  tradition  that  gold  existed  there  in  large 
quantities.  In  1874  General  Custer  explored  the  country,  and  some 
miners  connected  with  his  military  command  discovered  gold  placers 
of  paying  quality.  The  placers  were  soon  worked  out,  but  their 
sources  were  discovered  and  developed.  These  mines  produce  gold 
only.  The  veins  are  true  fissure  veins  in  form  and  very  wide,  but  the 
ore  is  all  of  low  grade.  This  mineral-producing  region  covers  an  area 
sixty  miles  long  and  thirty  miles  wide,  containing  6,000  square  miles 
of  mineral-bearing  rock  and  gravel  beds,  and  the  conditions  are  favor- 
able for  rapid  extraction.  In  1880  the  production  of  gold  was  $4,123,- 
081.  Large  deposits  of  coal  are  also  found  of  good  quality  in  many 
places  west  of  the  Missouri  River. 

In  Wyoming  gold  mining  has  been  prosecuted  for  a  number  of 
years  at  the  southeastern  base  of  the  Wind  River  Range  of  mountains, 
the  Sweetwater  country  and  the  Summit  Mountains,  but  not  to  that 
extent  which  has  characterized  other  adjacent  Territories.  Silver 
mines  have  also  been  discovered  and  developed  in  the  Park  and  Med- 
icine Bow  Ranges,  near  the  south  line  of  the  Territory.  The  principal 
deposits  of  coal  are  also  found  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the  Terri- 
tory.    The  first  discovery  of  gold  was  made  by  a  party  of  hunters  on 


634  ECHOES.   FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

the  Strawberry  and  Sweetwater  Streams  in  1866,  and  the  following 
year  5,000  miners  and  emigrants  spread  over  the  country  and  built  the 
now  deserted  towns  of  South  Pass  and  Miner^s  Delight.  The  places 
were  of  little  value,  but  the  quartz  veins  promised  large  results,  the 
ledges  being  well  defined  and  very  broad.  A  considerable  amount  of 
eastern  capital  was  invested  in  the  mines  and  half  a  score  of  stamp 
mills,  ranging  from  five  to  twenty  stamps,  erected.  Man}'^  of  the  most 
promising  veins,  however,  became  exhausted  at  a  depth  of  100  feet, 
and  others  contained  so  large  a  quantity  of  barren  rock  as  to  prove 
unprofitable.  Some,  although  narrowing  greatly  on  development, 
were  exceedingly  rich,  assaying  hundreds  of  dollare  to  the  ton  of  rock. 
In  18T1,  while  at  this  stage  of  experiment,  an  incursion  was  made  by  a 
war  party  of  Sioux,  who  burned  and  otherwise  destroyed  the  mills  and 
mining  property,  and  drove  the  miners  from  the  country,  the  United 
States  Government  refusing  to  extend  a  suflficient  military  aid  to  pro- 
tect the  miners  in  their  pursuits.  Since  then  the  mines,  for  the  most 
part,  have  remained  in  their  undeveloped  condition  and  the  deserted 
cities  a  home  for  owls,  bats,  eoyotes  and  rattlesnakes.  Without  doubt, 
however,  the  country  is  rich  in  mineral  deposits,  and  at  some  future 
time  will  be  full\'  developed.  It  is  of  the  same  mountainous  formation 
as  other  Territories  of  great  mineral  wealth.  In  the  northern  part  of 
the  Territory  the  formation  is  alternate  mountain  and  valley.  On 
the  east  the  Big  Horn  Range  runs  from  the  plains  1,200  feet  above  the 
sea  level.  Then  follow  the  Big  Horn  Basin  and  "Wind  River  Yalley 
beneath  the  crown  of  the  tall  Wind  River  Range,  with  their  glaciers 
and  eternal  snows.  Beyond  them  rise  the  volcanic  peaks  of  the  Yel- 
lowstone Range,  and  within  their  shadow  lies  the  wonderful  ^National 
Yellowstone  Park,  described  in  another  chapter  of  this  book. 

Just  beyond  Wyoming's  border,  in  the  angle  between  the  Niobrara 
and  the  Wyoming  line,  lies  one  of  the  most  singular  formations  in  the 
great  West.  It  is  the  Mauvaise  Terres,  or  Bad  Lands,  a  sterile  desert 
spot,  without  water,  wood  or  pasture,  and  containing  no  living  thing. 
And  yet  this  scarred  and  blasted  region,  which,  on  first  beholding,  a 
famous  Indian-fighting  general  excitedlv  exclaimed:  "Well,  this  is 
h — 1  with  its  fires  put  out ! "  was  once  the  home  of  a  mighty  congre- 
gation of  animal  life.  Careful  scientific  explorations  of  this  region  by 
Prof.  Samuel  Aughey,  of  the  State  University  of  Xebraska,  reveal 
some  of  the  most  curious  remains  in  the  world.     The  almost  vertical 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUKTAIifS.  635 

sections  of  white  rock  have  been  chiseled  by  ages  into  unique  forms. 
Indeed,  as  viewed  from  a  distance,  they  reminded  the  explorer  of  one 
of  those  old  cities  which  exhibit  alone  their  ruins,  as  reminders  of  their 
ancient  grandeur.  It  is  in  the  deepest  caiions,  says  the  Professor,  at 
the  foot  of  the  stair-like  projections,  that  the  earliest  of  those 
wonderful  fossil  treasures  are  found,  which  have  done  so  much  to 
revolutionize  our  notions  of  the  life  of  Tertiary  times.  Here  are 
ound  the  remains  of  rhinoceri,  titanotherinos  and  old-time  river- 
horses,  much  like  the  hippopotami  of  modern  times.  Higher  up  in 
the  deposits  are  found  countless  numbers  of  turtles  mingled  with  the 
remains  of  land  animals.  Among  them  are  the  wonderful  orcontodas, 
which  Leidy  calls  ruminating  hogs,  because  their  cutting  teeth  and 
their  canines  and  their  feet  are  like  those  of  the  swine  family  while 
their  molars  are  patterned  after  those  of  the  deer,  and  the  upper 
portions  of  the  head  are  much  like  those  of  the  camel.  Several 
species  of  fossil  monkeys  have  also  been  found  in  those  sediments 
The  vast  numbers  of  these  animals  were  kept  within  proper  bounds  by 
gigantic  carniverous  animals,  such  as  sabre-teethed  tigers,  lyaenodons, 
wolves  and  others  of  like  na,ture.  Such  is  the  natural  history  of  this 
blasted  region,  where  no  tree  or  shrub  or  living  thing  now  exists,  and 
yet  once  in  the  dim  ages  was  a  tropical  region  abounding  in  such 
prolific  vegetable  life,  that  myriad  swarms  of  monkeys  fed  thereon, 
and  watered  by  such  deep  and  living  streams  that  immense '  turtles 
and  hippopotami  dwelt  therein,  or  stalked  forth  upon  the  land  like 
the  ruminating  hog  in  search  of  food ;  where  lions  and  tigers  hid  in 
the  jungle,  awaiting  the  frolics  of  their  monkey  prey,  and  where, 
doubtless,  roamed  the  pre-historic  man,  molded  in  giant  proportions, 
armed  with  his  mighty  war-club  to  contend  with  the  wild  beasts  for 
the  mastery  of  the  soil. 

The  first  disco ver}'^  of  gold  in  what  now  comprises  the  Territory 
of  Montana  was  made  in  the  year  1852,  on  Gold  Creek,  one  of  the 
headwaters  of  Clarke's  Fork  of  the  Columbia  River  by  Francois 
Finley,  a  French  half-breed  who  was  passing  through  the  country  on 
his  way  from  California.  Six  years  thereafter  James  and  Granby 
Street,  and  a  miner  of  the  name  of  Robinson  fell  in  with  Finley,  and 
were  told  of  the  rich-  deposits  he  had  discovered  on  Gold  Creek. 
These  men  proceeded  to  the  point  designated  and  gathered  a  consid- 
erable quantity  of  the  precious  metal,  but  were  driven  by  Indians 


636  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

from  the  country.  It  was  not  until  four  years  later  that  gold  was 
discovered  in  Deer  Lodge,  and  at  Grasshopper  Creek,  a  branch  of 
the  Beaver-head.  The  tide  of  emigration  tljat  followed  this  later 
discovery  founded  the  city  of  Bannock. 

In  1S63  the  vast  gold  deposits  on  Alder  Gulch  were  discovered 
from  which  $60,000,000,  were  gathered  in  four  years,  which 
included  a  territory  of  but  thirteen  miles  in  extent.  Virginia 
City  resulted  from  this  immense  emigration,  and  when  the  placei*s 
became  exhausted,  the  tide  roUed  away  to  other  and  richer  fields,  and 
Helena,  the  present  capital  of  the  Territory,  sprang  suddenly  into 
being. 

A  conservative  estimate  of  Montana's  total  yield  of  gold  is 
$150,000,000,  greater  than  any  of  the  other  Territories.  Where 
placer  exists,  its  source  quartz  is  always  to  be  found,  and  to  the 
quartz  veins  of  Montana  the  attention  of  the  miner  and  capitalist  is 
now  being  turned.  Silver  also  exists  in  large  quantities  in  every  direc- 
tion and  forms  an  important  element  in  the  mining  industry  of  the 
Territory.  It  is  a  vast  domain,  and  many  parts  are  yet  unknown  to  the 
prospector.  Until  recently  destitute  of  railroad  and  other  facilities 
for  the  rapid  transportation  of  the  ores,  only  those  of  a  very  high  grade 
could  be  made  available,  and  exploitation  itself  has  been  limited, 
superficial  and  imperfect  where  attempted.  Many  prosperous  mining 
communities  exist  in  various  parts  of  the  Territory-. 

Deer  Lodge  leads  in  placer  mining,  and  has  since  the  da^'s  of  Alder 
Gulch.  It  also  possesses  veins  of  gold,  silver  and  copper.  The  great 
Anaconda  Reduction  Works  are  located  in  this  count}^,  and  are  con- 
nected by  a  branch  line  of  railroad  with  the  Utah  &  Northern.  Their 
capacity  is  500  tons  per  day,  and  the  cost  of  the  plant  was  a  round 
$1,000,000. 

Silver  Bow  is  the  pride  of  Montana.  Its  population  is  from  15,000 
to  20,000,  of  which  Butte  City  claims  10,000  to  12,000.  It  is  situated 
but  a  few  miles  from  the  terminus  of  the  Utah  and  Northern  Pacific 
Railroads.  The  freight  handled  in  1883  was  169,000,000  pounds,  and 
in  1884,  250,000,000  pounds.  It  is  one  of  the  greatest  quartz  mining 
districts  in  the  world.  Two  hundred  and  fifty  lodes  have  been 
patented,  of  which  but  twenty-five  yield  a  monthlj^  sum  of  $300,000. 
The  number  of  stamps  at  work  aggregate  200,  and  fifteen  furnaces 
likewise  are  in   constant  operation.     The  mines  of  the  Helena  and 


STRUCK  IT  RICH. 
637 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  639 

Bowlder  districts  are  quite  as  valuable  as  those  of  Butte  district, 
awaiting  solely  the  hand  of  development.  The  completion  of  branch 
lines  with  the  Northern  Pacific  will  provide  an  available  market  for 
the  medium  and  low  grade  ores,  of  which  there  is  a  quantity  suflBcient 
to  surpass  the  net  results  already  attained  in  those  of  the  higher  grade. 

Central  Montana,  through  which  extends  the  Rocky  Mountain 
system,  is  a  region  of  lofty  ridges  and  lower  spurs  and  ranges,  inter- 
spersed with  beautiful  and  fertile  valleys.  This  is  the  great  silver  and 
copper  mining  region  of  the  Territory,  and  its  product  of  the  precious 
metals  since  the  first  discoveries  of  1862  have  alone  been  surpassed  by 
California  and  Nevada.  Granite  Mountain  is  the  richest  silver  mine  in 
Montana.  Fifteen  hundred  tons  of  rock,  worked  by  contract,  yielded 
$300,000,  and  the  ore  in  sight  is  estimated  at  200,000  tons. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  timber  belts  on  the  American  conti- 
nent for  a  hundred  miles  lies  in  Northwestern  Montana  and  Northern 
Idaho.  The  Territory  is  540  miles  from  east  to  west  and  275  from 
north  to  south,  possessing  a  superficial  area  of  145,776  square  miles, 
three-fourths  of  which  lie  upon  the  Pacific  Slope.  This  vast  territory 
is  watered  by  the  Missouri  and  its  tributaries,  together  with  Clark's 
Fork  of  the  Columbia,  and  are  navigable  for  a  distance  of  1,500 
miles,  within  the  boundaries  of  the  Territory. 

Eight  thousand  ledges  are  recorded  in  the  county  records  of  Mon- 
tana, each  representing  an  average  of  2,200  feet,  aggregating  a  gold 
run  4,000  miles  long. 

The  mineral  resources  of  Idaho  are  but  slightly  developed  in  com- 
parison with  the  riches  that  he  hidden  within  its  broad  domain.  Still 
its  mines  have  been  worked  for  many  years  and  have  been' found  very 
productive.  Rich  placers  were  discovered  on  the  Boise  and  Salmon 
Rivers  from  which  large  quantities  of  gold  were  obtained.  Since  the 
discovery  of  the  precious  metals  it  is  estimated  that  $100,000,000 
have  been  extracted  from  its  mines.  The  mines  in  the  Owyhee 
district,  in  the  southwestern  corner  of  the  Territory,  yielded  larger 
returns,  but  of  late  have  been  almost  entirely  neglected.  The  famous 
"Wood  River  district  was  discovered  as  late  as  1880,  but  are  now  the 
most  prominent  of  all  Southern  Idaho  mines.  They  have  yielded  mill- 
ions of  dollars  since  their  first  development,  and  the  ore  bodies  grow 
more  extensive  as  development  proceeds.  Located  in  an  excellent 
grazing  and  agricultural  countr}^,  with  ample  supply  of  water  and  tim- 


6i0  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

ber,  it  possesses  all  the  elements  necessary  for  cheap  mining,  and  the 
completion  of  branch  lines  of  railroad  to  the  very  center  of  the  mining 
district  furnishes  an  unlimited  transportation  at  low  figures  and  makes 
them  easy  of  access.  The  ores  range  in  value  from  $75  to  $200  per 
ton,  and  are  composed  of  argentiferous  galena,  averaging  from  100  to 
200  ounces  of  silver  and  from  40  to  70  per  cent,  of  lead.  Sampling  and 
smelting  works  have  been  established,  and  the  home  production  of 
bullion  has  been  considerable.  There  are  many  rich  mines  in  the  dis- 
trict, among  which  may  be  mentioned  as  an  illustration,  the  Parker 
Group,  located  in  August,  1883.  Its  dividends  for  the  fii'st  j^ear  were 
$80,000,  and  the  grade  of  ore  has  increased  with  the  depth. 

The  Sawtooth  mines  are  located  sixty-five  miles  west  of  the  Wood 
River  district  in  the  range  of  mountains  of  that  name,  derived  from 
the  peculiar  way  in  which  its  lofty  peaks  are  linked  for  many  miles. 
This  has  proved  to  be  a  rich  field  for  developing  its  precious  minerals. 
The  general  character  of  the  f or mationis  granite  with  porphyry  streaks 
and  belts  running  with  and  across.  Veins  of  silver  and  frequentl}'^  of 
gold  are  found  in  the  porphyry  and  sometimes  galena  ores  with  zinc 
and  antimony. 

The  mining  belt  of  Central  Idaho,  lying  principally  in  Alturas 
county,  has  been  compared  to  an  open  fan.  The  lava  beds  from  the 
end  of  the  handle  terminating  in  the  Black  Buttes,  near  the  American 
Falls.  The  fringed  edge  of  the  demi-sphere  circles  around  from  Eocky 
Bar,  distant  200  miles  from  the  Butler  to  the  country  of  the  Seven 
Devils,  to  Cape  Horn  and  to  Custer  City  in  the  Yankee  Fork  Region. 
The  lower  rib  of  the  fan  represents  the  veins  of  gold-bearing  rock  from 
the  Spring  Creek  Mountains  to  Rock  Creek,  Little  Smoky,  Rocky  Bar 
and  Atlanta's  famous  gold  mines  and  bars,  120  miles  away.  The  next 
rib,  running  parallel  with  the  gold  veins,  are  the  rich  silver  leads  of 
Bellevue,  Bradford,  Bullion,  Deer  Creek,  Galena,  etc.  The  rich  ruby 
silver,  bordering  on  the  gold  ores,  from  Vienna  and  Sawtooth,  150  miles 
away  to  the  Antelope  district,  constitute  the  next  rib  of  the  perspect- 
ive fan.  Next  the  large  copper  belt,  crossing  the  head  of  Lost  River 
and  circling  over  a  wide  expanse  until  it  winds  up  with  the  northwest 
casing  of  the  fan,  rich  again  in  gold  from  the  basin  of  the  Salmon 
River  to  Yankee  Fork  and  thence  to  the  southeast  country.  Within 
this  region  terrific  upheavals  naturally  define  the  mmeral  veins  which, 
in  many  instances,  are  projected  from  the  mountain  sides  in  eminence, 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    EOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


641 


traceable  on  the  surface  for  many  miles.  It  is  held  to  be  the  true  land 
of  fissure  veins,  carrying  gold,  silver,  copper  and  lead,  rich  beyond 
computation.  And  yet  how  inconsiderable  are  the  mining  develop- 
ments of  Idaho  Territory  compared  to  its  inexhaustible  mineral  wealth. 
The  last  census  reports  represent  the  joint  product  of  the  year  1879 
and  1880  at  little  less  than  four  millions  of  dollars.  Further  develop- 
ments since  then,  especially  in  the  Wood  Kiver  and  Alturas  districts, 
have  materially  increased  the  sum,  but  that  which  is  needed  the  most 


THE    TRAPPER. 


are  many  earnest  workers  with  small  capital  and  great  brawn  and 
energy,  who  will  convert  a  "  prospect  hole  "  into  a  mine.  They  are 
more  heartily  welcomed  in  every  mine  of  value,  and  of  far  more  serv- 
ice to  the  general  interests  of  the  country  than  the  capitalist  who 
pays  half  a  million  for  a  fully  developed  mine,  declaring  promptly  its 
regular  dividends.  Such  men  will,  by  earnest  effort,  reap  great  har- 
vests in  the  result. 

Washington  Territory  is  the  most  northwestern  of  all  the  States 
and  Territories,  and  divides  our  country  from  the  British  Possessions 
on  the  north,  while  its  western  shores  are  washed  by  the  waves  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean.     Its  first  settlements  were  made  by  the  fur  traders,  and 


642  ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

for  a  long  period  thej  were  .the  sole  remote  owners  of  the  soil.  It  is 
noted  for  its  lofty  mountains  and  tall  volcanic  peaks,  many  of  which 
exhibit  evidences  of  recent,  eruption.  At  the.' present  time  there  may 
occasionally  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye  smoke  and  steam  escaping 
from  crevices  and  rolling  over  the  hot  stones  at  their  summit.  It  is 
related  by  old  settlers  that  one  of  these  lofty  peaks  has  been  in  the 
throes  of  convulsion  since  the  advent  of  the  white  man.  Mount  Adams 
rises  to  the  height  of  9,570  feet  above  ocean  level ;  Mount  Saint  Helena, 
9,750  feet;  Mount  Baker,  10,719;  Mount  Hood,  11,225;  and  Mount 
Rainier  towers  above  them  all,  14,444  beyond  the  waves  of  the  ocean 
shore  line'.  These  lofty  crags  are  covered  with  a  dense  forest  of  valu- 
able timber,  from  which  300,000,000  feet  of  lumber  are  annually  cut, 
one  half  of  which  is  exported  to  Oregon,  California,  and  to  the  adjacent 
Territories. 

The  mineral  resources  of  the  Territory  are  but  slightly  developed. 
Silver  deposits  have  been  found  in  several  parts  of  the  Cascade  Range 
of  Mountains,  but  have  not  been  developed  to  any  great  extent.  The 
annual  production  of  precious  metals  does  not  exceed  $100,000. 
Between  the  Columbia  River  and  the  Cascade  Mountains  gold  is  being 
successfully  mined,  and  fine  prospects  have  also  been  found  in  silver, 
copper  and  iron.  Bituminous  coal  has  been  found  of  excellent  quality, 
and  late  researcJies  have  shown  that  the  coal-bearing  strata  covers  a 
district  of  at  least  20,000  square  miles.  Washington  Territory  boasts 
of  a  mining  industry  unknown  in  any  other  portion  of  the  Union.  It 
is  that  of  ice  mining.  One  of  the  wonders  of  the  Territory  is  its  ice 
caves,  which  lie  about  forty  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Salmon  River, 
and  are  reached  by  a  ride  through  a  picturesque  portion  of  the  Cascade 
Mountains.  From  the  lofty  table-lands  you  gaze  upon  the  ranches  far 
below,  dotted  with  orchards  and  roaming  cattle.  At  your  feet  sparkles 
the  white  Salmon,  and  above  you  are  the  leafy  forests  of  mountains 
rising  ridge  upon  ridge  until  seemingly  veiled  in  the  clouds.  Thread- 
ing a  narrow  trail  through  a  wilderness  of  green  brush,  you  emerge 
into  beautiful  openings  of  bunch  grass  and  wild  oats  with  an  occasional 
lofty  tree  to  break  the  continuity  of  green  ocean,  whose  billows  are 
sometimes  red  with  flames  that  creep  down  from  forest  fires  and  sub- 
due the  w^ild  growth  of  vegetation. 

On  arriving  at  one  of  these  caves  you  enter  through  an  opening 
in  the  ground  ten  feet  square,  formed  by  the  fall  of  a  portion  of  its 


MOUNT  HOOD, 
043 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  645 

roof.  You  find  that  they  were  channels  in  the  basalt  through  which 
streams  of  lava  flowed  in  the  eruptive  period,  and  on  their  walls  and 
floors  traces  of  the  fluid  matter  are  still  to  be  seen.  Both  ends  of  the 
cave  are  open  to  the  passage  of  the  winter  air,  whose  intense  refrig- 
erating power  operates  upon  the  waters  that  flow  therein  from  the 
surface  in  small  percolating  streams,  and  thus  freeze,  layer  upon  layer, 
solid  from  the  bottom.  The  summer  thaw  is  not  rapid  nor  of  great 
degree  compared  with  the  large  ice  formation.  This,  in  part,  is  pre- 
vented by  the  freezing  temperature  of  the  air  within  the  cave,  pro- 
tected by  their  deep  covering  from  the  sun's  ra3's.  The  main  body  of 
ice  has  a  level  appearance,  indicating  a  subterranean  drainage,  which 
releves  the  caves  of  water  from  the  wastage  of  the  ice.  At  the  entrance 
the  channel  turns  at  right  angles  and  runs  in  one  direction  200  feet 
and  perhaps  600  in  the  other.  Some  of  the  caves  are  larger,  and  their 
galleries  run  for  miles,  but  the  ice  formation  is  not  so  great  as  when  it 
is  more  condensed  in  space.  Along  these  galleries  lie  the  layers  of  ice 
firmly  packed  to  a  height  of  twenty  feet.  Here  the  miners  pick  and 
gather  the  article,  pack  it  upon  the  backs  of  mules  and  horses,  and 
convey  it  to  the  steamboat  landing.  On  the  road  you  meet  these 
heavily-laden  trains,  each  animal  conveying  two  sacks  containing  250 
pounds  each  at  the  starting  point,  but  which  melts  to  half  the  size  on 
the  journey.  Such  is  one  of  the  wonders  and  one  of  the  profitable 
mining  industries  of  this  remote  Territory  —  gold  and  silver  in  the 
minimum,  but  ice  in  abundance. 

The  mineral  wealth  of  Oregon  has  not  been  developed  to  any 
appreciable  extent.  Gold  placers  have  been  successfully  worked  for  a 
long  period  in  J  ackson  and  Josephine  counties.  In  Grant  and  Baker 
counties  both  placer  and  quartz  mines  have  been  discovered  and 
worked  to  some  extent.  The  yield  per  annum,  however,  from  all 
sources  has  never  exceeded  a  million  dollars.  Copper  has  been  found 
in  the  southwest,  both  native  and  in  combinations.  Iron  ore  is  abun- 
dant, and  coal  has  been  found  in  large  quantities  in  many  locations. 

The  mining  industry  of  Utah  Territory  is  mainly  confined  to  the 
Wahsatch  range  of  mountains,  east  and  southeast  of  Salt  Lake  City, 
although  other  valuable  discoveries  have  been  made  and  developed  to 
advantage  in  the  "Western  and  Oquirrh  ranges.  The  metals  found  are 
mostly  silver  and  the  ores  galena  and  chlorides  of  silver,  and  the 
deposits  are  mthe  form  of  fissure  veins.     According  to  the  last  census 


640  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

reports  the  production  of  Utah  for  the  year  1879  was  $5,468,879,  of 
which  but  $211,640  was  gold.  The  production  of  1880  was  $6,450,963, 
an  increase  of  nearly  one  million  of  dollars.      -« 

There  are  a  number  of  smelting  works  in  this  Territory  which 
are  made  profitable  by  the  reduction  of  the  ores,  and  the  following  is 
a  detailed  statement  of  the  amount  of  gold,  silver  and  lead  produced 
by  these  works,  according  to  the  census  report  of  1880 : 

2.893.478  r.)s.  of  refined  lead j     $    144,624.90 

26.442,093  lbs.  of  unrefined  lead 661,052.32 

3.783.566t  ounces  of  silver 4,161,922.60 

8.020  t  ounces  of  pold ]          160,400.00 


q,  .  .  i  +  Silver  valued  at $1.10  per  ounce     . 
)  +  Gold  valued  at  $20  per  ounce 


$5,127,999.82 


Large  dejxjsits  of  coal  have  been  found  in  the  Territory,  princi- 
pally in  the  valley  of  the  Weber  Kiver.  Discoveries  of  large  deposits 
of  bituminous  coal  in  the  upper  coal  measures  have  likewise  been 
made  in  Castle  Valley  and  in  the  canons  of  Grand  and  Green  Rivers. 
Iron  ores  likewise  exist  in  immense  bodies  in  various  parts  of  the 
Territory. 

Although  this  Territory^  has  been  settled  for  many  j^ears,  it  has 
been  only  of  late  that  its  mineral  wealth  has  at  all  been  developed. 
The  Mormon  theocracy  discountenanced  all  attempts  on  the  part  of 
its  people  to  engage  in  raining  for  the  precious  metals.  All  efforts  in 
that  direction,  by  special  command  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  were  con- 
fined to  the  working  of  coal  and  iron  mines.  This  was  occasioned  by 
the  dread  of  an  influx  of  Gentiles  in  their  midst,  should  the  knowledge 
of  Utah's  hidden  wealth  be  communicated  to  the  outer  world,  and  such 
proved  to  be  true  when  the  fact  in  reality  became  known. 

Under  the  old  Mexican  and  Spanish  control  of  the  Territory  of 
Jfew  Mexico  the  development  of  its  resources  amounted  to  nothing. 
And  later,  when  the  Territory  became  a  part  of  the  United  States, 
those  of  the  small  white  population  who  possessed  the  energy  or 
inclination  to  engage  in  that  industry  found  their  labors  circumscribed 
and  the  title  to  mining  possessions  entangled  with  the  countless  land 
grants  which  rose  up  to  disturb  their  activity.  These  grants  were  of 
two  kinds.  Those  which  in  terms  conveyed  the  mineral  to  be  found 
on  the  grant,  and  those  which  did  not.  The  greatest  number  of  the 
grants  did  not  convey  the  mineral,  and  recent  rulings  of  the  court 
affirmed  the  principle,  that  although  mineral  lands  be  contained  within 


OffaBtke 


648  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAIXS. 

civilized  and  Christianized  many  of  the  Indian  tribes  on  the  Gila  and 
Colorado, 

The  soil  is  dry  and  arid,  and  the  sparkling^streams  that  flow  from 
beyond  the  volcanic  peaks  and  from  the  highlands  on  the  north  and 
east  become  alkaloid  and  diminutive  from  mingling  with  the  soil,  and 
find  their  way  in  mudd}'^  rivulets  to  the  mighty  gorges  of  the  Caiion 
of  the  Colorado,  7,000  feet  beneath  the  sun-lit  surface  of  the  earth. 
On  this  acrid  soil — dreary  wastes  of  desert  plains  —  grows  the  giant 
cactus.  Sometimes  reaching  a  height  of  thirty  feet,  it  stands  upon 
the  parched  plain  like  a  lone  sentinel,  its  naked  arms  outstretched  as 
if  in  wonder  at  the  traveler  who  has  invaded  its  silent  desert  solitudes. 
Marvine,  the  geologist,  writing  of  this  peculiar  region  in  the  report  of 
geographical  surveys  west  of  the  one  Hundredth  meredian,  Yol.  II, 
remarks : 

"  To  stand  upon  the  edge  of  the  Pinal  Mountains  upon  a  quiet 
day  and  look  off  upon  the  wonderfuDy  silent  and  arid  plains,  with 
their  innumerable  '  Post  Mountains,'  rising  like  precipitous  islands 
from  the  sea,  all  bathed  in  the  most  delicate  tints  and  Ij'ing  death-like 
in  the  peculiar  intangible  afternoon  haze  of  this  region,  which  seems 
to  magnify  distant  details,  rather  than  to  subdue  them,  impresses  one 
most  deeply.  The  wonderful  monotony  seems  unenclosable  by  an  hori- 
zon, and  one  imagines  the  scene  to  continue  on  and  have  no  end. 
Though  the  gulf  and  ocean  are  300  miles  away,  yet  here  is  the  conti- 
nent's real  southwestern  border." 

The  mineral  resources  of  Arizona  are  yet  in  the  infancy  of  devel- 
opment. In  the  rude  parlance  of  the  toilers  of  bed  and  rock  the  coun- 
try has  been  merely  "  scratched."  It  is  true  that  near  its  southern 
line,  in  the  region  lying  adjacent  to  Old  Mexico,  mines  of  gold  and 
silver  were  worked  by  the  Spaniards  many  generations  ago.  Centuries 
rolhngaway  and  blotting  out  forever  much  that  then  existed  have  not 
obliterated  the  evidences  of  their  rude  labor.  Men  of  the  present  day, 
in  tiieir  attempts  hitherto  to  unearth  the  wealth  of  Arizona's  hidden 
depths,  have  constantly  fallen  beneath  the  savage  blow,  and  discour- 
agement has  continuousl}'^  followed  their  efforts.  With  the  advent  of 
the  railroad,  however,  a  larger  immigration  has  poured  in,  and  a  par- 
tial suppression  of  the  scourge  of  savage  violence  has  given  an  impetus 
to  milling  industries  in  hitherto  inaccessible  places.  Since  1870  the 
population  has  increased  from  9,000  to  40,000,  a  gain  of  319  per  cent. 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  649 

Progress  has  been  made  in  man^'^  directions.  New  mines  have  been 
opened  in  all  parts  of  the  Territory,  and  the  old  ones  are  being  worked 
with  renewed  energy.  The  new  industry  has  awakened  general  inter- 
est,  and  old  miners  are  flocking  there,  believing  it  to  be  the  long- 
sought  "promised  land."  For  the  calendar  year  of  1880  the  mineral 
productions  in  Arizona  amounted  to  $5,660,000,  thus  placing  it  fourth 
in  production  of  the  precious  metals.  Since  then  it  is  estimated  the 
yield  has  increased  to  $10,000,000  per  annum. 

To  comprehend  the  difficulties  with  which  the  miner  has  con- 
tended in  prosecuting  his  industry  with  the  savage  tribes  of  Arizona,  it 
is  sufficient  to  state  that  not  less  than  30,000  Indians  inhabit  the 
Territory  and  roam  over  its  entire  length  and  breadth.  Many  of 
these  tribes  are  warlike,  but  some  are  peaceable,  having  for  a  long 
period  been  under  the  spiritual  control  of  the  Spanish  missionaries. 
Of  these  the  Moquis  are  the  more  advanced,  dwelhng  in  towns  built 
for  protection  upon  the  high  mesas.  Their  life  is  mainly  pastoral, 
possessing  many  herds  of  sheep  and  goats.  They  cultivate  the  soil 
sufficient  to  raise  their  own  supplies  of  grain,  fruit  and  vegetables. 
They  still  retain,  however,  some  of  the  ancient  customs  and  super- 
stitions of  their  tribe,  among  which  is  the  revolting  Snake  Dance, 
related  in  a  previous  chapter. 

Altogether,  Arizona  is  interesting  to  both  student  and  progressist. 
Within  its  limits  are  the  remains  of  a  former  dense  civilization  far  in 
advance  of  the  most  civilized  of  the  present  tribes  of  Indians.  They 
inhabited  towns  built  with  the  plumb  line.  Their  walls  of  defense, 
their  ancient  castles  and  watch  towers  and  the  ruins  of  their  cities  and 
aqueducts,  all  denote  a  race  of  a  high  order  of  intelligence.  Truly  it  is  a 
land  of  wonders  and  of  romance,  where  an  inspired  pen  might  write, 
from  "  the  testimony  of  the  rocks,"  the  history  of  a  renowned  race, 
versed  in  the  arts  of  civilization,  who,  like  the  ancient  Gauls,  were 
blotted  out  b}'^  the  fire  and  sword  of  a  more  barbarous  and  war-like 
band  of  conquerors. 

All  in  all,  the  history  of  the  mining  industries  of  the  Pacific  Coast 
and  Territories  is  more  marvelous  than  any  page  of  romance  that  has 
excited  the  wild  imagination  of  man.  Monte  Cristo's  have  lived  in  all 
ages,  but  the  grandest  prototype  is  to  be  found  to-day  amid  the  vast 
gold  fields  and  shining  silver  lands  of  the  far  "West.  There  the  wildest 
imagination  is  dwarfed  by  the  reality  that  lies  before  you  in  the  Alad- 
din wealth  secreted  in  the  hiUs  eternal.     It  is  difficult  to  contemplate 


650  ECHOES    FLOM     THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

the  riches  that  have  already  been  acquired,  and  those  which  still  lie 
hidden.  The  export  of  the  precious  metals  on  the  Pacific  Coast  since 
1848  has  amounted  to  nearly  thirteen  hundred  millions  of  dollars, 
while  the  product  of  the  mines  during  the  same  period  has  amounted 
to  nearly  twenty-two  hundred  millions  of  dollars. 

It  is  estimated  that  nearly  five  thousand  millions  of  gold  and  sil- 
ver have  been  extracted  from  the  earth  since  the  discovery  of  gold  in 
California  and,  shortly  thereafter,  on  the  plains  of  Ballarat.  While 
the  vast  harvest  of  wealth  in  the  two  great  gold  fields  of  the  world 
has  continuously  diminished,  the  annual  production  of  the  precious 
metals  has  not  materially  diminished,  inasmuch  as  with  the  decrease 
of  gold  the  harvest  of  silver  has  as  rapidly  increased.  In  the  United 
States  the  silver  product  has  more  than  doubled  within  the  past  ten 
years,  and  largely  exceeds  the  gold. 

Nothing  has  contributed  more  to  the  financial  independence  of 
the  United  States  than  its  enormous  wealth  in  the  precious  metals. 
In  1876  the  Government  began  to  prepare  for  the  resumption  of 
specie  payments, which  by  the  act  of  1875  must  take  place  January  1st, 
1879.  On  January  1st,  1876,  the  total  amount  of  gold  and  silver  in  the 
National  Treasuary  equalled  $79,824,448;  on  1st  of  January,  1877, 
$96,517,418 ;  on  January  1st,  1878,  $139,518,405 ;  and  on  the  1st  of  Jan- 
uary, 1879,  when  specie  payments  were  resumed,  $224,865,477 — the 
accammulation  in  three  years  having  been  $145,041,029.  During  the 
same  period  the  exports  of  specie  over  imports  amounted  to  $13,324,- 
965.  Resumption  in  the  United  States  was  accomplished  without  draw- 
ing a  dollar  from  the  hoards  of  the  Old  "World  or  creating  any  disturb- 
ance in  its  financial  circles  or  without  decreasing  its  power  to  consume 
or  its  attendant  demand  for  the  product  of  the  agricultural  and  manu- 
facturing industries  of  our  land.  No  other  country  in  the  world 
could  have  done  likewise,  and  we  alone,  through  the  beneficent  aid  of 
our  mining  industries. 


CHAPTER  XLY. 

THE  COURSE  OF  EMPIRE  —  HISTORY  OF  THE  ACQUISITION  OF  TERRITORY  -  THE 
LOUISIANA  PURCHASE  — THE  TREATY  OF  GAUDALUPE  HIDALGO -THE  CON- 
TEST OVER  THE  QUESTION  OF  THE  NORTHWESTERN  BOUNDARY —  "  FIFTY- 
FOUR  FORTY  OR  FIGHT  "-THE  FIRST  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  COLUMBIA  RIVER 
BY  AN  AMERICAN  SEA  CAPTAIN  —  OUR  TITLE  BASED  IN  PART  UPON  THAT 
DISCOVERY— THE  WONDERFUL  GROWTH  OF  THE  PACIFIC  COAST-THE  TER- 
RITORIES-THE  ADVANCEMENT  OF  THE  ARTS  AND  SCIENCES -THE  SEATS  OF 
WESTERN  EMPIRE  — LEARNING'S  CAPITOL  ON  THE  WESTERN  SLOPE -MANI- 
FEST DESTINY  OF  THE  VAST  AMERICAN  REPUBLIC. 

A  REMARKABLE  train  of  events,  spreading  over  many  years  and 
following  each  other  in  due  succession,  each  bearing  an  important 
relation  to  the  other  as  well  as  the  final  result,  has  not  only  crowned 
the  far  West  and  the  Pacific  Coast  with  a  veil  of  romance,  but 
determined  the  ultimate  forces  to  be  directed  as  by  the  Hand  of 
Destiny  in  molding  that  vast  political  empire,  now  forming  an 
integral  part  of  the  American  Union. 

More  than  a  hundred  years  ago  Spain,  weakened  b}'^  her  wars  and 
the  decrepitude  of  age,  with  her  vast  national  power,  that  once  made 
her  the  foremost  nation  of  Europe  and  mistress  of  land  and  sea,  swept 
away  by  adverse  tides  of  fortune,  was  compelled  to  relinquish  her 
grasp  upon  her  N'orth  Pacific  possessions  and  abandon  the  military 
posts  she  had  established  in  the  territory  acquired  north  of  the  forty- 
second  parallel.  The  British  exploring  party  under  Vancouver  had 
traversed  Puget  Sound,  named  after  one  of  his  lieutenants,  and  notwith- 
standing the  treaty  between  the  two  countries,  had  sailed  along  the 
coast  and  laid  claim  in  the  name  of  the  British  sovereign  to  many 
points  embraced  in  Spanish  territory.  But  while  the  great  English 
explorer  w^as  thus  engaged  in  the  pleasing  occupation  of  extending 
British  empire  beneath  the  Enghsh  ensign,  with  a  strong  naval  fleet, 
the  captain  of  a  small  American  merchant  vessel,  with  no  broad  pennant 
at  his  topmast,  nor  cannon  to  awaken  their  silent  depths,  unacquainted 
with  the  science  of  navigation,  and  ignorant  of  the  great  results  to  be 
ultimately  determined  by  his  act,  made  a  discovery  which  afterward 

651 


653  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

proved  of  significant  value  in  establishing  the  title  of  his  government 
to  a  large  and  iun3ortant  area  of  Northwestern  territory. 

The  discovery  of  a  long-sought  river  of  the  West,  that  would 
open  up  a  communication  with  Hudson's  Bay  and  the  North  Atlantic, 
and  which  was  believed  to  exist  somewhere  in  that  latitude,  was  one 
of  the  primal  objects  of  the  English  exploring  expedition.  The  advent- 
urous Spaniards  had  noted  the  appearance  of  such  a  stream,  but  had 
not  extended  a  particular  observation  of  any  parts  of  its  limits.  They 
had  never  explored  or  laid  claim  to  the  boundaries  of  this  mystical 
river.  Vancouver  in  broad  daylight  sailed  past  an  opening  of  the 
coast  and  pronounced  it  to  be  but  an  inlet  into  which  if  a  river  flowed, 
it  was  of  no  especial  prominence.  Captain  Gray,  commander  of  a 
Boston  merchantman,  engaged  in  the  business  of  collecting  sandal- 
wood, shells  and  other  inferior  articles  of  commerce  which,  together 
with  furs,  he  exchanged  with  the  Chinese  for  teas  and  silks  for  the 
Boston  trade,  in  the  pursuit  of  his  occupation  sailed  past  that  same 
opening  and  formed  an  entirely  different  opinion  from  that  of  the 
English  navigator.  It  is  true  discovery  of  rivers,  bays  or  islands  was 
not  the  business  which  engaged  his  attention.  He  was  a  simple  mer- 
chantman, who  was  seeking  to  drive  a  double  trade  and  obtain  thereby 
double  profit  on  his  labor  and  skill.  But  Captain  Gray  nevertheless 
determined,  in  his  own  mind,  that  this  inlet,  pronounced  of  no  impor. 
tance  by  the  English  commander  in  a  conversation  held  by  him  a  few 
days  before  on  being  hailed,  was  the  long-sought  stream,  and  so  entered 
it  on  his  log-book.  After  sailing  along  the  coast  and  discovering 
another  bay,  which  now  bears  his  honored  name,  he  returned  to  the 
foiToer  inlet,  determined  to  make  such  an  investigation  as  would  end 
the  controversy  in  his  ow}i  mind.  The  weather  continuing  favorable, 
he  sailed  without  accident  through  the  Northern  Channel,  across  its 
dangerous  bar,  and  anchored  his  vessel  twenty  miles  or  more  beyond 
the  breakers.  Here  he  went  ashore  and  explored  as  best  he  could  the 
land  with  its  mountains  and  magnificent  forests.  To  the  broad  stream 
that  emptied  into  the  bay  he  gave  the  name  of  Columbia's  River. 
After  remaining  a  number  of  days  he  returned  and  proceeded  northward 
on  his  business. 

Vancouver,  after  his  talk  with  the  American  captain,  concluded  to 
return  and  make  a  closer  observation  of  the  disputed  inlets.  He 
directed  Lieutenant  Means  to  proceed  with  his  vessel  upon  this  work, 


ECHOES    FROM    THE     ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  653 

who,  on  beholding  the  rough  breakers  on  the  bar,  concluded  to  cross 
them  in  a  ship's  launch,  with  which  he  entered  the  river  and  proceeded 
to  ascend  it.  When  about  eighteen  or  twenty  miles  within  the  bar,  he 
beheld  at  anchor  a  small  English  trading  vessel,  commanded  by  one  of 
his  own  countrymen  named  Baker,  after  whom  the  small  bay  was 
called.  He  informed  the  Lieutenant  that,  having  fallen  in  with 
Captain  Gray  a  short  time  previous,  he  had  by  him  been  informed  of 
his  discovery,  and  he  himself  had  crossed  the  bar  to  confirm  the  discov- 
ery by  personal  observation. 

Having  explored  the  river  for  nearly  a  hundred  miles  with  the 
launch,  Lieutenant  Means  turned  to  his  ship  and  rejoined  his  com- 
mander's squadron,  to  whom  he  reported  his  proceedings.  Thereupon, 
notwithstanding  Gray  had  already  discovered  and  named  the  river 
and  entered  it  on  his  log-book,  the  English  commander  claimed  for  the 
British  nation  the  discovery  of  the  great  river  of  the  West  upon  the 
ground  that  the  stream  did  not  commence  for  some  distance  beyond 
Gray's  Anchorage.  A.nd  years  later,  when  the  great  boundary  ques- 
tion between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britian  was  discussed  and 
finally  adjusted,  this  was  the  argument  resorted  to  by  the  latter 
power  to  establish  its  claim.  Happily,  however,  it  was  of  no  weight; 
the  question  of  priority  of  discovery  being  granted  to  America. 

England  and  Spain  becoming  involved  in  a  controversy  over  the 
terms  of  their  late  treaty  concerning  the  North  Pacific  discoveries, 
and  the  United  States  being  unable  to  force  its  claims  against  those 
powers,  the  vessels  of  all  nations  were  temporarily  withdrawn  and  the 
country  remained  as  remote  and  uninhabited  by  Europeans  as  before, 
save  the  members  of  the  Northwestern  Fur  Company. 

In  the  meantime  great  events  were  transpiring  in  the  Old  World. 
Great  battles  were  fought  and  the  boundary  lines  of  kingdoms  and 
empires  changed  by  the  arbitrament  of  the  sword.  With  these  political 
changes  of  European  territory  were  hkewise  the  kingly  possessions  of 
the  New  World.  Their  titles  were  parted  with  as  baubles  in  the  hands 
of  their  rulers.  Louisiana,  which  at  that  period  embraced  all  the  terri- 
tory not  claimed  by  Spain  west  of  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
south  of  the  forty-ninth  parallel,  had,  many  years  before,  in  1762,  been 
ceded  by  France  to  Spain.  With  the  guns  of  Napoleon,  France  once 
more,  in  1800,  became  repossessed  of  Louisiana.  The  Eagles  of  Bona- 
parte had  crossed  the  Julian  Alps,  fought  ten  pitched  battles  in  as  many 


654  ECHOES    FKOM    THE    KOCKY    MOCXTAIlfS. 

days,  thundered  at  the  gates  of  the  Austrian  capital  and  annihilated 
the  Austrian  army.  Added  to  the  glories  of  Marengo  and  Austerlitz 
were  the  successes  of  the  Italian  campaign,  and  added  to  all  the  splendor 
of  JS^apoleon's  civic  reign.  But  war  is  costly,  and  vast  military  cam- 
paigns can  not  be  planned  and  executed  without  money  in  large  quan- 
tities. In  1803  Napoleon  sold  Lomsiana  to  the  United  States  for 
$15,000,000.  At  that  time  it  embraced  nearly  all  of  the  present  States 
of  Louisiana,  Arkansas,  Missouri,  Iowa,  Minnesota,  Kansas,  Nebraska, 
Dakota  Territory,  Indian  Territory,  part  of  Colorado,  Wyoming,  Mon- 
tana, Idaho,  Oregon  and  Washington  Territory, 

In  1804  the  southern  portion  of  this  vast  region  was  organized  by 
Congress  as  the  Territory  of  Orleans,  and  in  1812,  with  the  addition 
of  certain  other  territory  on  the  Mississippi  River,  admitted  into  the 
Union  as  the  State  of  Louisiana. 

The  early  settlement  of  the  Pacific  coast  was  made  a  few  years  after 
the  Lewis  and  Clarke  expedition,  organized  by  President  Jefferson, 
pierced  the  untrodden  territory  and  formed  a  lodgment  on  the  Pacific. 
InlSlO  John  Jacob  Astor  attempted  to  estabhsh  a  settlement  in  the  inter- 
est of  commerce  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  Congress,  doubtless 
impelled  b}"  the  knowledge  that  England  proposed  to  contest  the  title 
to  a  portion  of  our  northwest  possessions,  acquired  by  discovery  and 
purchase,  and  the  fact  that  an  American  settlement  would  tend  toward 
a  peaceful  adjustment  of  the  question,  agreed  to  support  and  protect 
such  an  undertaking.  The  Northwest  Company,  jealously  watching 
its  opportunity,  endeavored  to  frustrate  this  movement  by  establishing 
themselves  a  settlement  at  that  point.  Overtaken,  however,  by  an 
accident  in  the  interior,  they  did  not  reach  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia 
until  Astoria  had  been  built  and  in  a  condition  to  defind  itself  from  any 
encroachments  of  rights.  But  a  combination  of  circumstances,  embrac- 
ing the  War  of  1812,  defeated  for  a  while  American  occupation  of  the 
shores  of  the  Pacific.  The  Northwest  Company, through  the  treachery 
of  Astor's  British  partners,  becoming  possessed  of  his  trading  posts  on 
the  Columbia  River,  obtained  control  of  the  country  for  trading  pur- 
poses, and  being  finally  merged  in  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  retained 
this  control  for  a  period  of  ten  years  under  the  sanction  of  the 
treaty  of  1818,  which  left  the  boundary  question  in  an  unsettled  con- 
dition and  permitted  the  subjects  of  each  country  to  hunt,  fish  and  trade 
west  of  the  Rockv  Mountains  for  that  length  of  time. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    KOCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


655 


A  diplomatic  struggle  now  began  for  the  settlement  of  the  bound- 
ary question.  The  claim  of  Great  Britain  by  discovery  rested  upon  a 
light  foundation.  It  embraced  the  fact  that  Sir  Thomas  Drake  had 
seen  the  coast  in  1580 ;  that  Cook  had  examined  it  slightly  in  1778 ; 
and  that  Yancouver  much  more  thoroughly  in  1793.  All  of  these, 
however,  were  but  re-discoveries.  The  claim  was  further  based  upon 
the  trading  posts  established  in  the  Oregon  country  by  the  fur  traders, 


RIVAL   FUR   TRADERS. 

but  these  were  matters  of  private  employment  for  temporary  purposes, 
and  no  attempt  was  made  at  permanent  settlement  south  of  latitude 
forty-nine. 

The  claim  of  the  United  States  was  based  upon  the  Spanish  title 
acquired  through  purchase  from  France,  Avhich  perhaps  alone  would  not 
have  proved  sufficient  to  establish  the  validity  of  the  claim.  But  it 
was  further  substantiated  by  the  right  of  discovery  founded  upon  the 
voyage  of  Gray  and  the  expeditions  of  Lewis  and  Clarke.     On  the 


656  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

strength  of  Gray's  discovery,  the  United  States  claimed  all  the  terri- 
tory drained  by  the  Columbia  River.  As  a  question  of  international 
law  the  title  thus  acquired  might  not  have 'been  tenable.  Added  to 
this,  however,  were  the  subsequent  explorations  by  land  of  the  Lewis 
and  Clarke  expedition,  organized  by  the  Government  under  the  imme- 
diate direction  of  President  Jefferson,  which  crossed  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains, struck  the  southern  headwaters  of  the  Columbia,  passed  down 
that  river  to  its  mouth  and  fully  explored  the  Oregon  country. 
The  British  fur  traders  were  not  in  Government  employ,  and  their 
explorations  were  north  of  latitude  49°,  while  the  expedition  of 
Lewis  and  Clarke  was  made  under  Government  authority  and  covered 
most  of  the  territory  south  of  49°.  In  addition  to  this  was  the  Amer- 
ican claim  of  settlement.  As  remarked,  in  1811,  Astoria  was  built  and 
captured  by  the  British  in  the  succeeding  war,  but  returned  to  the 
United  States  in  1818.  It  was,  however,  abandoned  by  its  private 
owners.  In  1822  and  1827  attempts  were  made  to  establish  American 
fur  companies,  but  witliout  success  on  account  of  the  powerful  rivalries 
of  the  British  companies  already  firmly  established.  They  opened  the 
way  for  a  more  permanent  settlement  with  which  the  British  Govern- 
ment could  not  compete.  This  was  by  immigration,  which  began  in 
1832,  and  had  so  far  increased  in  1845  that  the  American  population 
amounted  to  more  than  three  thousand  settlers,  and  the  occupation  of 
the  country  was  legitimate  and  complete.  All  of  this  chain  of  title 
rendered  the  claim  of  the  United  States  valid  up  to  latitude  49°. 

As  shown,  the  second  article  of  the  convention  of  October  20th, 
1818,  fixed  latitude  49°  as  the  boundary  from  its  intersection  with  the 
Lake  of  the  "Woods  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  West  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  the  whole  territory,  as  above  stated,  was  to  be  open  for  ten 
years  to  the  vessels,  citizens  and  subjects  of  both  powers,  without  pre- 
judice to  the  claims  of  either.  By  the  convention  of  August  6th,  182Y, 
"the  joint  occupation  of  the  Oregon  country  by  Great  Britain  and  the 
United  States  was  continued  indefinitely,  with  the  provision  that 
either  party  might  annul  and  abrogate  it  on  giving  twelve  months' 
notice  to  the  other.  As  American  immigration  increased,  the  perils 
of  the  joint  occupation  increased.  Jurisdiction  over  the  citizens  of 
one  country  could  not  be  exercised  by  the  magistrates  of  the  other, 
and  therefore  difficulties  originating  between  the  citizens  of  different 
nationalities  could  not  be  settled  in  a  court  of  competent  jurisdiction. 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  657 

In  1838  Congress  attempted  to  organize  a  system  of  justice  in  the 
Oregon  country  by  imitating  the  British  system  of  erecting  forts  and 
providing  magistrates  for  the  trial  of  offenses,  without  the  design  of 
terminating  the  joint  occupancy. 

The  year  following,  the  settlement  of  the  N'orth western  boundary 
question  filled  with  excitement  both  countries,  and  a  strong  war  party 
originated  in  the  United  States  who  went  so  far  as  to  insist  upon  what 
was  known  as  the  Russian  boundary  of  54°  40'.  The  Shibboleth  of 
this  strong  war  party  was  "  Fif ty-four-forty-or-fight." 

In  this  state  of  national  feeling  the  Democratic  National  Conven- 
tion of  1844  assembled  and  declared  for  the  "re-occupation  of  Oregon" 
on  the  ground  of  our  perfect  title  to  the  country.  The  triumph  of  the 
party  on  this  question,  and  the  determined  tone  of  President  Polk's 
message  to  Congress  aroused  intense  feeling  in  Great  Britain,  and  prep- 
arations were  immediately  made  for  war  by  that  power.  Action  in 
the  United  States  was  likewise  taken  toward  that  end  by  efforts  to 
increase  the  American  navy.  This  excitement  continued  in  both 
countries  and  war  became  imminent.  Finally,  as  a  compromise  measure, 
the  British  ambassador  offered,  June  6th,  1846,  to  accept  latitude  49°  as 
the  boundary  to  the  channel  between  Vancouver's  Island  and  the  main 
land ;  thence  down  the  middle  of  the  channel  and  the  strait  of  Fuca  to 
the  Pacific,  with  free  navigation  to  both  parties  of  the  channel  and  the 
Columbia.  This  being  submitted  to  the  Senate  by  the  President,  that 
body  advised  its  acceptance,  and  ratifications  were  exchanged  at  London 
on  July  17,  1846,  and  the  Oregon  question  was  finally  settled.  It  is  an 
undoubted  fact  that  the  solidity  of  the  American  claim  to  the  vast 
Oregon  Territory  acquired  by  the  treaty  of  1846  was  based  upon  the 
settlement  of  the  country  by  American  immigration.  Between  the 
periods  of  settlement  of  the  two  boundary  questions  immigration  from 
the  Western  States  flowed  into  Oregon,  and  at  the  time  of  the  ratifica- 
tion of  the  treaty  of  1846  there  was  an  American  population  of  at 
least  8,000  souls.  The  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  though  still  a  power- 
ful monopoly,  could  no  longer  prevent  commerce  to  the  same  extent  as 
formerly,  and  they  were  compelled,  by  force  of  circumstances,  to  unite 
with  the  American  settlers  in  supporting  a  provisional  form  of  govern- 
ment, modeled  after  American  principles.  The  constant  and  impera- 
tive demands  of  this  American  populution  undoubtedly  forced  the 
American  authorities  to  finally  annul  the  treaty  of  joint  occupancy  by 


658  ECHOES   FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

serving  the  required  notice.  Year  after  j'^ear  they  memorialized  Con- 
gress to  extend  over  them  its  protecting  care  and  receive  them  into 
the  bosom  of  the  nation.  Finally  by  and  through  this  settlement  of 
the  Oregon  pioneers,  the  United  States  was  enabled  to  retain  the 
whole  of  the  territory  south  of  the  forty-ninth  parallel,  one  of  the  vast 
"  gardens  of  the  "West." 

About  the  time  that  Oregon  clamored  for  a  territorial  form  of 
government  and  arms  and  soldiers  to  protect  her  from  savage 
incursions  the  United  States  became  involved  in  warlike  difficult}" 
with  Mexico.  England,  anxious  to  recover  in  some  way  a  recompense 
for  her  lost  territory,  conceived  the  idea  of  seizing  California  as  soon 
as  war  should  be  declared.  Our  Government,  aware  of  this  move- 
ment and  the  knowledge  that  a  British  man-of-war  had  been 
dispatched  to  that  coast  for  such  a  purpose,  transmitted  secret  instruc- 
tions to  the  commander  of  our  naval  forces  on  the  Pacific,  and  to 
Captain  Fremont,  then  engaged  in  a  scientific  exploring  expedition  to 
California,  to  unite  in  preventing  such  action  on  the  part  of  the 
British  by  seizing  California  as  soon  as  war  was  declared.  The 
orders  were  to  wait  for  the  proclamations  declaring  war  between  the 
two  nations  before  seizing  it,  unless  they  had  reason  to  fear  the 
British  would  forestall  them.  The  American  commander  arrived  at 
Monterey  Bay  one  day  before  the  British  admiral  had  affected  a 
landing  and  seizure.  On  the  day  following.  Admiral  Seymour,  com- 
manding the  British  man-of-war  "  Collingswood,"  arrived,  but  too  late 
to  execute  the  orders  of  his  Government.  California  became  ours  first 
by  seizure  and  occupation  and  subsequently  b}'  the  terms  of  the 
treaty  of  Guadalupe  Hidalgo.  This  gave  us  the  entire  seaboard  from 
the  49°  of  latitude  to  that  of  24°  20'  latitude,  and  all  of  the  territory 
west  of  Kansas  and  south  of  Dakota  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  not 
embraced  in  the  Louisiana  purchase  of  1803. 

Beginning  with  the  small  and  disputed  territory  on  the  Pacific 
coast,  through  one  of  the  waves  of  destiny  that  roll  over  a  nation's 
history  and  mold  its  events,  the  Mexican  War  added  not  alone  the 
star  of  Texas  but  the  constellation  that  illumines  the  Pacific's  shore. 
Far  back  in  the  century  was  the  dream  of  Jefferson,  and  the  footprints 
of  his  adventurous  pioneers  were  seen  on  the  sands  unwashed  by  Time. 
Between  the  Missouri  and  the  coast  lay  what  our  fathers  believed  to 
be  an  impenetrable  desert,  where  dwelt  savage  tribes  feasting  on  human 


659 


ECHOES    FROM   THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  661 

flesh.  Through  desert  and  wilderness  and  gorge  and  sunless  caiion, 
across  mad  rivers,  leaping  wildly  over  rock  and  bowlder,  and  thence , 
over  the  crags  of  lofty  mountains,  seeking  a  passage  through  their 
rocky  walls  to  the  peaceful  waters,  crept  the  adventurous  Fremont, 
son-in-law  of  the  great  Missouri  senator  who,  inspired  by  the  heroism 
of  the  young  explorer  and  the  scientific  knowledge  unfolded  by  his 
exploits,  uttered  the  prophecy  in  1844,  that  the  generation  then  alive 
would  live  to  behold  the  Asiatic  commerce  traverse  the  North  Pacific 
Ocean,  enter  the  Oregon  River,  climb  the  western  slope  of  the  E-ocky 
Mountains,  issue  from  its  gorges  and  spread  its  fertilizing  streams' 
over  our  wide  extended  Union.  That  the  tranquil  surface  of  the 
North  Pacific  Ocean  and  the  vast  inclined  planes,  spreading  eastward 
and  westward  from  the  base  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  would  be 
swept  by  the  magic  vessel  and  the  swift-flying  car,  and  that  great 
city  on  the  Missouri  would  find  herself  as  near  to  Canton  as  she 
was  to  London,  with  a  far  better  and  safer  route  by  land  and  sea  to 
China  and  Japan  than  she  at  that  time  possessed  to  France  and  the 
British  kingdom.  "Within  three-fourths  of  a  century  from  the  day 
when  Lewis  and  Clarke  departed  from  the  little  hamlet  of  St.  Louis  to 
open  the  trail  of  the  white  man  through  the  untrodden  depths  of  the 
mighty  and  mysterious  wilderness,  and  within  a  quarter  of  a  century 
from  the  hour  these  prophetic  words  were  uttered,  mankind  beheld  the 
accomplishment  of  all  these  grand  works  of  art,  skill  and  genius.  Fol- 
lowing the  trail  of  Fremont  came  the  Mormon  pioneers  fleeing  from 
the  cities  of  civilization  to  found  in  the  heart  of  the  wilderness  "  a 
gem  of  the  mountains " — a  great  recruiting  camp  for  the  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  gold  seekers,  who,  guided  by  the  hand  of  destiny, 
planted  the  seeds  of  civilization  and  laid  the  foundations  of  empire  on 
the  remote  Pacific  coast. 

Spanish  adventurers  had  long  before  effected  a  lodgment  upon  the 
coast  and  sent  its  cowled  and  beaded  missionaries  to  sow  the  seeds  of 
a  Christian  faith  in  the  savage  soil.  Around  these  outposts  of  Chris- 
tianity had  gathered  for  three  centuries  a  race  of  Castilian  blood,  who 
feebly  tilled  the  prolific  soil  and  herded  their  vast  bands  of  cattle  on 
the  haciendas  that  stretched  from  the  coast  range  to  the  ocean.  The 
adventurer,  the  idler  and  the  grandee  each  found  his  home  and  occu- 
pation amid  the  life  of  ease  on  those  silent  plains.  The  vast  wealth 
that  la}'^  at  their  feet  was  undiscovered.    The  annals  of  history  contain. 


^%  ECHOES    FBOM    THE    EOCKT    MOUNTAIXS. 

nothing  surpassing  the  bold  achievements  of  Hernando  Cortez,  who, 
.with  a  handful  of  brave  men,  subdued  the  empire  of  Mexico.  The 
vast  spoil  of  treasure  that  fell  into  the  lap  of  tije  conqueror  he  was  told 
came  from  the  far  north  and  west  of  the  capital  in  whose  halls  he  made 
his  warlike  camp.  Inspired  with  the  hope  of  possessing  this  land  of 
wonderful  wealth,  whose  pearls  and  precious  metals  were  as  the  sands 
of  the  sea,  he  dispatched  his  officers  on  voyages  of  discovery.  Many 
were  the  journeys  by  land  and  sea  untU  the  year  1534,  when  Ximenes 
landed  on  the  peninsula  of  Lower  California.  He  called  it  the  Isle  of 
Pearls,  or  the  Isla^  Carolinas,  which,  in  the  succeeding  year  was 
changed  to  the  Islands  of  California,  on  the  personal  visit  by  Cortez. 
The  voyages  of  Francisco  d'Ulloa,  Alarcon,  Pedro  Cabrillo,  and  the 
land  expeditions  of  Coronado  and  Cabeza  de  Yaca  through  the  Northern 
Mexican  States,  from  1537  to  1544,  furnish  evidence  of  the  eager  search 
for  gold  and  empire  long  before  Sir  Francis  Drake  landed  upon  the 
coast.  The  missionary  explorations  of  the  Spanish  friars,  Francisco 
Xavier,  Salvatierra  and  Eusebio  Kino,  toward  the  middle  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  resulted  in  the  discovery  of  a  land  route  to  California 
and  the  occupation  of  the  country  by  the  missionary  priests,  whose 
establishments  extended  through  the  greater  part  of  Upper  as  weU  as 
Lower  California. 

During  all  these  centuries  of  research  by  the  Spanish  explorers  in 
the  hot  endeavor  to  discover  the  precious  metals,  the\^  lay  hidden  from 
their  sight,  awaiting  the  hour  when,  moved  by  destiny,  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  should  uproot  the  soil  and  unfold  the  vision  that,  centuries 
before,  had  troubled  the  dreams  of  the  Spanish  conqueror.  "When 
the  starved  and  dying  band  of  men  led  by  Fremont  for  the  first  time 
crossed  the  rocky  defiles  of  the  Sierras  and  came  down  upon  the 
grassy  plains  of  the  Sacramento,  they  fell  fainting  into  the  arms  of  the 
Swiss  settler,  John  A.  Sutter.  The  armies  of  !N'apoleon  being  scat- 
tered, beneath  whose  silver  eagles  he  had  fought,  he  had  wandered  by 
sea  to  this  remote  spot,  and  established  a  rancho  on  the  banks  of  the 
Sacramento  River.  Here,  in  his  miU  race,  after  the  stirring  events 
already  recorded  which  added  California  to  the  Union,  Marshall,  the 
Mormon  soldier,  picked  up  the  grain  of  gold  that  set  the  world  on 
fire.  From  this  hour  dates  the  period  of  its  rise  and  progress.  From 
all  parts  of  the  civilized  earth  came  the  motley  bands  of  adventurers, 
who  filled  its  canons,  gulches,  hollows  and  ravines  and  river  beds  in 


ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS.  663 

the  mad  search  for  sudden  wealth.  No  event  in  the  annals  of  modern 
times  produced  such  an  immediate  and  far-reaching  beneficial  effect 
upon  the  commerce  of  the  world,  the  expansion  of  territory  and 
extension  of  civilization  as  the  discovery  of  the  vast  gold  deposits  of 
California.  No  human  mind  can  compute  the  immensity  of  its  results 
or  penetrate  the  myriad  channels  of  the  world's  vast  highways  and 
marts  of  trade  through  which  the  enormous  treasures  passed  and 
repassed  in  a  multitude  of  forms,  which  have  been  gathered  from  the 
beds  of  ancient  streams,  and  wrested  from  the  grim  old  mountains  by 
battles  strokes  of  industry,  more  powerful  than  cannon-shot  or  mortar 
shell  of  besieging  armies.  It  can  be  safely  asserted  that  during  the 
period  between  the  discovery  of  gold  on  the  Pacific  coast  to  the  pres- 
ent time,  more  than  two  thousand  millions  of  dollars  have  been  added 
to  the  metallic  currency  of  the  world  by  the  States  and  Territories  of 
the  Union  — the  offspring  of  this  first  great  discovery.  Its  influence 
extended  far  beyond  our  own  limits.  It  aroused  the  adventurous  spirit 
of  the  world.  It  renewed  the  wasting  energies  of  helpless  races  in 
distant  lands.  Its  inspiration  spread  throughout  the  continent  of 
Europe,  and  toiling  thousands  from  the  worn-out  workshops  of  the 
Old  World  beheld  hope  in  the  distance  as  they  journeyed  toward  the 
new  El  Dorado.  Not  alone  England  and  Ireland  and  other  parts  of 
the  British  realm,  but  Germany,  France,  Italy  and  distant  Russia 
poured  upon  our  shores  a  large  proportion  of  their  surplus  population. 
Commerce,  the  arts,  agriculture,  manufactures  and  mechanical  skill 
followed  in  their  train  upon  the  Pacific  coast.  Mexico,  the  South 
American  States,  and  China  exported  it  laborers,  and  there  was  work 
and  abundance  for  all.  The  area  of  discovery  extended  over  the 
whole  Pacific  slope,  and  beyond  its  mountain  walls.  New  States  and 
Territories  sprang  into  existence.  Treasures  poured  in  from  the 
Sierras,  and  from  every  gulch,  ravine,  sandbar,  bank  and  bluff  through- 
out the  broad  expanse  of  territory  thus  opened  up  to  the  hand  of 
industry  by  the  hand  of  destiny.  The  spirit  of  American  progress  and 
American  ideas  asserted  itself  in  the  substantial  form  of  permanent 
settlement,  and  towns  and  cities  grew  by  the  side  of  the  golden  sand- 
bars. New  channels  of  labor  were  opened,  new  demands  for  capital 
created,  and  deserved  prosperity  crowned  their  united  efforts.  A 
series  of  political  divisions,  equal  in  the  aggregate  to  a  third  of  the 
continent,  arose  from  out  of  the  dark  wilderness,  and  came  within  the 


664  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 

sunlight  of  civilization  and  the  influence  of  labor  and  industry.  That 
which  had  been  but  the  home  of  wild  beasts  and  the  nomadic  savage 
became  the  outposts  of  civilization.  With  set^ements  came  trade  and 
commerce,  and  the  means  of  inter  and  transcontinental  communica- 
tion. Roads  were  opened*,  nvers  were  bridged  and  telegraph  lines 
erected;  stage  and  express  companies  established  to  every  mining  camp 
as  well  as  town  and  city ;  railroads  built,  binding  ocean  to  ocean  ;  new 
branches  and  fields  of  labor  developed,  employing  tens  of  thousands 
of  skilled  workmen ;  millions  of  acres  of  wild  land  reclaimed  and  cul- 
tivated, and  a  desert  wilderness  of  mountain  and  plain  transformed 
into  a  throng  of  imperial  States  and  Territories,  stretching  from  the 
Missouri  River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  In  this  vast  territory,  so  recently 
a  wilderness,  unknown  and  unexplored,  within  a  comparatively  unim- 
portant period  of  time  there  has  been  developed  the  most  wonderful 
growth  in  all  the  industrial  and  professional  pursuits  of  civilized  man, 
from  the  rudest  forms  of  manual  labor  to  the  loftiest  training  of  the 
human  mind  in  the  schools  of  art  and  science.  Here  has  been  laid 
broad  and  deep  the  foundations  of  social  and  political  society,  whose 
influence  has  spread  bej^ond  the  seas.  Its  ports  command  the  com- 
merce of  the  Asiatic  realm.  It  has  aided  most  materially  in  opening 
up  the  vast  empires  of  China  and  Japan  to  trade  and  intercourse  with 
the  world,  and  has  proved  a  leaven  in  molding  reforms  in  the  polit- 
ical societies  of  those  ancient  and  exclusive  empires.  In  CaUfornia 
alone  the  population  which  in  January,  1849,  was  but  2G,000  is  to-day 
1,500,000,  and  her  annual  exports  of  wheat,  flour,  wool  and  wine, 
to  say  nothing  of  her  bullion  and  miscellaneous  productions,  amount 
to  more  than  fift}'^  millions.  Her  corporate  dividends  are  annually 
above  830,000,000 ;  her  banking  capital  more  than  $150,000,000,  and 
the  yearly  transactions  of  her  mining  stock  range  from  $200,000,000  to 
$250,000,000  more.  Her  hotels,  banking  houses,  commercial  cham- 
bers and  pubhc  buildings  equal  the  finest  of  the  Atlantic  States  or 
Europe,  and  her  lines  of  ocean  steamers  encompass  the  commerce  of 
the  world.  With  her  rolling-mills,  manufactories,  forges  and  foun- 
dries, her  agricultural  development  and  the  operation  of  her  mines, 
with  her  ship-building  and  commerce,  her  railroads  and  telegraphs,  her 
factories,  mercantile  and  mechanical  pursuits,  and  her  vast  industries 
of  every  degree  pouring  its  wealth  into  the  lap  of  mankind,  we  behold 
her  colleges,  universities,  high  schools  and  system  of  public  instruction 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  665 

adding  the  education  and  refinement  of  lier  people  to  these  other 
brilliant  achievements  that  have  crowned  her  labors  with  imperishable 
renown. 

And  nowhere  in  the  world  is  there  a  broader  field  for  the  restless 
energy  of  man ;  nowhere  is  there  a  land  where  man's  senses  are  so 
quickened  and  sharpened  by  contact  with  the  resistless  energy  and 
force  of  humanity  which  has  carved  an  occidental  empire.  Nowhere 
have  such  conditions  appeared  which,  seized  upon  by  the  far-seeing, 
steel-nerved  men  of  that  land  of  activity,  have  enabled  such  colossal 
fortunes  to  be  builded  in  a  year,  a  month,  a  week,  a  day.  To  some 
fortune  has  not  come  by  sudden  movement  upon  the  chess-board  of  life's 
great  game  of  chance,  but  by  gradual  accumulation  and  severe  thought 
and  labor.  Many  who  have  accumulated  a  moderate  fortune  in  the 
varied  pursuits  of  life  have,  with  a  sudden  impulse,  drifted  into  the 
stock  market  and  become  great  millionaires  in  an  incredibly  short  period 
of  time.  Still  they  were,  first  of  all,  educated  to  the  business.  They 
have  labored  incessantly,  worked  in  the  levels,  crawled  through  tun- 
nels, dropped  down  shafts  and  for  years  lived  the  life  of  a  slave.  Sud- 
denly they  have  appeared  upon  the  stock  boards  and  cleared  five 
millions  in  a  single  deal  in  Ophir  or  Yellow  Jacket.  One  man  possess- 
ing this  knowledge  has  stood  alone,  with  the  courage  of  a  Marlborough, 
contending  with  all  the  dealers  on  the  Pacific  coast  and  the  Bank  of 
California,  and  outwitting  them  all,  has  broken  the  bank  and  gathered 
immense  wealth.  And  yet  such  is  the  recuperative  vitality  of  that 
business  sphere,  the  self-same  bank  which  had  closed  its  doors  with  a 
debt  of  $14,000,000  has,  within  a  few  years,  paid  every  cent  of  the 
incubus  and  elevated  its  stock  to  double  its  former  value.  But  greater 
than  the  mining  millionaires  are  those  who  have  built  and  operated 
the  railroads.  "While  the  wealth  of  Baldwin,  and  Fair,  and  Flood,  and 
O'Brien  and  Mackey  will  reach  the  colossal  sum  of  $60,000,000  in  the 
aggregate,  the  accumulation  of  the  railroad  men  go  far  beyond  that 
lofty  sum.  The  estate  of  Mrs.  Mark  Hopkins  is  estimated  at  more 
than  $30,000,000 ;  that  of  Crocker  at  $40,000,000,  and  that  of  Leland 
Stanford,  the  president  of  the  Central  Pacific  Koad  and  the  present 
United  States  senator  from  California,  at  $50,000,000.  Besides  these 
great  representative  estates  are  countless  others,  diminutive  compared 
with  those  of  the  leaders,  and  San  Francisco,  the  city  of  the  Golden 
Gate,  is  the  gateway  to  such  golden  deposits,  such  fabulous  individual 


666  ECHOES  FROM  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS. 

wealth  as  make  it  the  richest  city  in  the  world  commensurate  with  its 
population.  All  that  might  be  curiously  stated  of  the  mountains  of 
gold  that  lie  hidden  within  the  vaults  of  the  imperial  Pacific  city  would 
be  but  a  vague  outline  of  the  real  facts,  a  mere  shadow  of  the  positive 
substance,  a  dream,  of  the  wonderful  fictions  of  Aladdin's  lamp. 

"What  California  has  accomplished  by  the  conjunction  of  affairs, 
formed  by  the  hand  of  destiny,  awaits  in  greater  or  less  degree  the 
larger  area  of  territory  surrounding  it.  Time  will  unfold  its  resources. 
Excellence  crown  its  efforts.  The  grandest  possibilities  lie  within  its 
reach.  Destiny  itself  is  within  its  control.  From  chaos  it  has  already 
reached  the  paths  of  industrial  glory,  and  ere  long  it  will  spring,  in  the 
strength  and  beauty  of  its  morning  life,  into  greater  States  of  the 
Union,  sharing  its  common  blessings  as  well  as  its  national  strength 
and  renown.  Education  will  he  at  the  very  base  of  its  foundations. 
Education  in  all  the  mechanical  arts  and  sciences;  in  all  the  branches 
of  its  varied  industries;  in  each  motor  and  valve  of  labor;  in  its 
mountain  and  fallow  land;  in  the  product  of  the  mine  as  well  as 
the  mill:  in  the  form  and  shape  of  its  social  structure;  in  its  schools 
and  institutions  of  learning;  in  the  embellishments  and  ornamenta- 
tion of  society;  in  the  cultivation  of  tHe  soil  as  well  as  the  observation 
of  the  stars ;  in  the  laying  of  the  rail  and  the  building  of  its  cities,  and 
in  the  teaching  of  the  press  as  well  as  the  pulpit — for  nowhere  has  the 
press  made  more  advancement  than  on  the  Pacific  coast.  It  has 
proven  the  herald  of  the  new  age  of  progress.  Its  power  was 
prophesied  in  the  far  past.  More  than  3,000  years  ago  one  of  the 
grand  old  seers  spoke  of  the  "living  spirit  of  the  wheels."  Was  it 
"  the  living  spirit "  applying  the  forces  of  nature  to  the  wheel  of  art 
and  industr}'^ — driving  the  ship  across  the  seas  and  the  car  over  the 
land  and  through  the  heavens  on  the  pinions  of  light,  or  was  it  the 
civilizing.  Christianizing,  educating  press  of  America,  thrown  off  by  the 
cylinder  wheel?  Let  the  modern  seer  tell.  K^owhere  has  such  an 
an  originality  of  thought  and  ideas  held  such  supreme  sway  as  on  the 
Pacific  coast  and  in  the  Territories.  It  has  been  the  pioneer  educator 
of  the  wilderness,  and  it  has  embodied  the  most  original  and  prolific 
thought  from  the  most  original  of  men — they  who  have  gathered  their 
inspiration  from  nature,  the  grandest  of  all  founts.  iN^owhere  in  the 
world  has  there  arisen  to  delight  and  inspire  mankind  with  thoughts  of 
sublimity  as  the  race  of  men  who  have  embellished  the  literature  of  the 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS.  669 

far  "West.  No  El  Dorado  of  the  earth  ever  gathered  together  such  an 
array  of  genius  from  the  old  schools  and  educational  haunts  of  the 
civilized  and  refined  East  as  are  to  be  found  in  the  mining  camps  of 
the  great  mineral  belt  of  the  West.  The  change  from  the  sober,  staid, 
quiet  days  of  the  East  to  the  wild  and  adventurous  life  in  the  West, 
added  a  robustness  of  expression  and  a  depth  of  thought  totally 
unknown  in  their  former  abode  to  the  educated  drifts  of  their  mind. 
It  was  a  union  of  art  and  nature.  I  have  seen  men  driving  stage 
coaches  and  jotting  down  thoughts  in  their  mind  for  subsequent 
expression  that  thrilled  the  reader  in  distant  lands.  In  a  little  packet 
of  papers,  carefully  folded  away  from  the  sight  of  men,  was  a  degree 
of  master  of  arts,  gained  by  actual  labor  in  the  classics  and  sciences. 
I  have  seen  a  man  in  a  gray  flannel  shirt,  with  a  broad  sombrero  on  his 
head,  drive  into  Salt  Lake  City  a  band  of  California  horses  and,  after 
placing  them  in  the  corral,  sit  on  the  porch  of  the  hotel  and  discourse 
upon  the  hervos  of  Homer,  and  afterward  charm  the  ladies  at  a 
governor's  reception  by  the  music  of  his  voice  and  the  polite  gentility 
of  his  manners.  He  had  been  a  professor  of  languages  at  a  leading 
university  of  one  of  the  Western  States.  I  have  sat  down  by  the  side 
of  a  prospecting  hole  beneath  the  shadow  of  Fremont's  Peak  and 
listened  to  a  profound  discourse  upon  the  science  of  metallurgy  by  a 
man  who  had  been  digging  all  day  in  the  sand  and  gravel.  He  was  a 
learned  physician  of  wealth  who,  from  love  of  nature's  solitudes,  had 
sought  a  home  in  the  mountains.  Instances  might  be  multiplied. 
These  were  but  the  representatives  of  that  class.  The  physical  aspect 
of  the  country  operated  upon  their  cultured  minds.  The  lofty  mount- 
ains whose  serrated  domes  had  resisted  the  lightning  stroke,  the  illim- 
itable stretch  of  plain,  the  deep  valleys  of  verdure,  where  roll  the 
mountain  torrent,  the  dark  forests  of  fir  and  pine,  over  whose  solitudes 
upon  the  hills  of  gold  and  purple  of  the  heavens  rest  with  the 
descending  glories  of  the  sun — all  are  filled  with  the  rapture  of  an 
ecstacy  that  enlivens  the  human  mind  far  beyond  its  richest  expecta- 
tions. It  broadens  and  deepens  with  the  current  of  thought  and 
emotion,  and  the  still  waters  are  upmoved  by  the  mysterious  forces  that 
lie  within  the  soul  of  man.  Thought  springs  into  action  and  man 
becomes  a  hero  through  the  indwellings  of  his  dormant  nature,  aroused 
by  the  grand  influences  of  his  mighty  surroundings. 

Such  is  the  race  of  men  who  are  laying  the  foundations  of  empire 
in  the  wilderness.    The  l!^apoleon  of  industry  who  smites  the  rugged 


670  ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUXTAINS. 

mountam  to  gain  its  hidden  wealth,  who  tarns  the  water  course  of 
rivers,  who  builds  cities  of  civihzation  within  the  trackless  wastes  and 
rears  an  imperial  state  from  the  rude  elements  of  labor  and  society  is 
likewise  laying  the  foundation  of  a  great  commonwealth  of  leamino- 
and  education  that  will  some  day  shine  above  the  world  of  literature 
withgreat«r  luster  than  the  evening  planet  which  casts  its  scintillating 
rays  over  the  lone  miner's  camp  amid  the  foothills  of  the  rocky  Sierras. 
And  these  elements  are  perpetual  and  imperishable.  I  have  some- 
where read  a  reverie  on  the  everlasting  indestructibihty  of  gold.  That 
the  acids  which  bum  into  the  vitality  of  all  else,  roll  harmless  from  its 
polished  surface.  While  air  and  water  decay  all  baser  metals,  to  gold 
they  are  innocuous.  Bury  it  through  long  ages  in  the  bosom  of  the 
earth,  and  when  the  rude  tool  of  the  excavator  again  brings  it  to  light, 
while  everything  around  it  and  originally  associated  with  it  has 
returned  to  dust  from  which  it  sprang;  while  the  delicate  form  which 
it  adorned  has  become  an  inappreciable,  impalpable  powder ;  while 
the  strong  bone  of  the  mighty  warrior  who  smote  his  way,  sword  in 
hand,  through  serried  legions,  crumbles  as  you  gaae  upon  it,  and  his 
trusty  sword  lies  a  mass  of  shale  rust,  the  delicate  tracery  of  gold 
which  adorned  it,  or  the  finely-wrought  tiara  which  encircled  the  brow 
of  his  queen,  is  there  in  its  pristine  beauty,  perfect  as  when  it  left  the  work- 
man's hands  and  became  the  pride  and  joy  of  her  fleeting  3'ears.  Yea, 
days,  years,  centuries  have  rolled  by;  mighty  empires  risen  and  fallen ; 
dynasties  that  dreamed  their  power  should  be  everlasting  have  passed 
away;  armies  that  marched  and  conquered  have  become  nerveless 
with  the  death  of  age ;  cities  teeming  with  population  and  commerce 
have  become  the  dwelling-places  of  owls  and  bats ;  the  very  pyra- 
mids themselves,  raised  in  the  pride  andpowerof  the  ancient  Egyptian 
kings,  and  destined  to  linger  forever  upon  the  wave  of  time,  have 
been  seared  and  marked  by  its  avenging  hand  and  made  ready  to 
crumble  when  its  gnawing  tooth  shall  have  performed  its  perfect  work  ; 
and  vet  the  thin  filament  and  delicate  tracery  of  gold  have  stood 
unchanged  through  all  the  ages — with  their  mighty  work  of  trans- 
mutation— as  fair  and  beautiful  as  when,  three  thousand  years  ago, 
theyedorned  the  queenly  Athenian  brow  or  the  ruler  of  the  ancient 
cities  of  the  plain,  or  by  the  sea  of  Tiberias,  the  Mediterranean  or 
Euphrates. 

But  more  imperishable  than  silver,  more  indestructible  than  gold, 
is    the    Hand    of    Destiny  and  the  Spirit  of  Progress,  that    leads 


ECHOES    FROM    THE    ROCKY    MOUNTAINS. 


671 


triumphant  the  nations  of  the  earth  in  the  subjugation  of  nature  and 
the  upbuilding  of  empires.  It  rises  above  the  empire  that  it  builds  5 
above  the  kings  that  rule  and  moulder ;  above  armies  that  march  and 
conquer,  and  cities  that  teem  with  people,  beside  the  rivers  of  the 
earth.  It  is  the  spiritual  force  that  survives  the  wreck  of  matter 
crumbled  by  the  tread  of  time.  It  is  co-existent  with  the  forces  of 
nature,  and  lives  when  the  rocks  and  mountains  and  pyramids  have 
crumbled  into  soil  for  the  myriad  generations  that  follow  in  the 
divine  order  of  their  being.  Societies  will  come  and  go.  Kingdoms 
and  nations  may  rise  and  fall,  but  the  Hand  of  Destiny  will  continue 
to  mould  and  fashion  the  rude  forces  of  nature  into  the  imperial 
forms  of  State  and  Empire.  It  will  lead  the  newborn  generations  into 
paths  of  high  endeavor,  as  they  appear  and  disappear  in  the  order  of 
their  existence.  The  goal  of  yesterday  will  be  the  starting  point  of 
to-morrow.  The  wisdom  of  one  era  will  be  grander  the  next.  The 
living  movement  of  one  age  will  be  transferred  to  another.  The 
wheels  of  nature  roll  not  backward,  all  things  move  with  the  spirit  of 
progression.  It  is  the  imperishable  law  of  the  universe.  From  the 
birth  of  time  its  impetuous  current  has  rolled  on  toward  the  intermin- 
able ocean  into  which  the  spoils  of  earth  are  gathered.  Such  has  been 
the  history  of  all  the  ages,  all  lands  and  nations,  the  world,  old  and 
new;  and  here  at  length,  within  the  borders  of  our  own  land,  the 
course  of  empire'  takes  its  way,  moved  by  the  Hand  of  Destiny, 
operating  upon  the  wonderful  forces  of  nature  in  countless  ways,  to 
create  the  fairest  and  mightiest  realm  of  all  the  ages;  "a  land  of 
liberty  and  law,  the  home  of  the  world,  the  refuge  of  mankind,  at 
whose  feet  are  laid  the  scepters  of  the  earth,  to  choose  where  she 
would  reign  —  Time's  noblest  offspring." 


